The New Unicorns Landscape
The Latest 119 Unicorns Produced In 2024.
Throughout 2024, 119 companies have reached unicorn status, highlighting a surge in innovation across sectors such as AI, FinTech, and Healthcare.
Welcome back to another edition of New Economies, which is rooted in my experiences working in venture. We’re living in extraordinary times—the most exciting era ever for technology, with groundbreaking trends emerging constantly that will redefine how we live and work in the future. Join me on this journey—subscribe to New Economies to stay ahead of the curve in technology. We’re just getting started!
In this edition, we discover:
The latest 119 unicorns.
Their characteristics, including where they are headquartered and the categories they are operating in.
The most active investors investing in companies before they reach unicorn status.
Our Unicorns Tracker: Companies which may become unicorns in the future.
Learnings from this year’s unicorns and the trends to watch such as emerging ecosystems.
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A year in review
As this year draws to a close, we wanted to dedicate this edition to mapping out the latest companies which have reached unicorn status in the last 12 months.
This year has been quite the journey for the technology ecosystem with almost 30% of all venture funding going into AI startups, such as startups building AI tools across Generative AI, AI Agents, Customer Support, LegalTech, Sales, and tools to support us within the workplace.
As we approach 2025, we expect the adoption of AI to accelerate, driving deeper integration across professional workplaces. However, it’s not just AI making waves. Cybersecurity stands out as a key trend, with seven companies in the category achieving unicorn status this year. Meanwhile, Software, Blockchain, Energy, and FinTech remain dominant fields for newly produced unicorns. Health-focused companies are also on the rise, with five reaching unicorn status this year.
We take a closer look at the latest unicorns in full.
The 2024 Unicorns Landscape
This year, the ecosystem has produced 119 unicorns, with most emerging from the U.S, China, India, and the U.K. Notably, developing ecosystems like Uzbekistan have also made their mark, minting their first unicorn, Uzum.
This market map represents the companies which became a unicorn in 2024.
Disclaimer: Unicorn companies which have been acquired are excluded from the market map.
Which categories are these unicorns building in?
Of the 119 unicorns featured in our exclusive data room, at least 33 (28%) achieved unicorn status this year by operating in AI. Other notable sectors include Software (12), Blockchain (8), FinTech (8), Energy (8), Cybersecurity (7), Transportation (6), and Health (5).
Headquarter Locations
It probably doesn’t come as a surprise to see the U.S, leading the pack who have produced 70 unicorns this year, followed by: China (13), India (7), U.K (6), and France (4).
Most Active Investors
Who are the most active investors investing in these companies before they reach unicorn status?
New Economies Unicorns Tracker
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Companies To Watch
World Labs - Founded By The Godmother Of AI
World Labs was co-founded by Fei-Fei Li, the former Google Cloud AI boss who is often called the "Godmother of AI" due to her pivotal role in the foundational research behind modern generative artificial intelligence. She is also the current co-director of the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered Artificial Intelligence. Fei-Fei Li, recently founded World Labs which describes its primary product as “Large World Models.”
Sierra – Founded By Former Salesforce Co-CEO
One-year-old Sierra which focuses on selling artificial intelligence-powered customer service chatbots to enterprises has raised $175 million in a recent funding round led by Greenoaks Capital that gave it a $4.5 billion valuation.
Moniepoint - The FinTech Unicorn out of Nigeria
The Nigeria-based FinTech Moniepoint has gained unicorn status after raising $110m from investors including Google.
Uzum - Uzbekistan lands its first tech unicorn
Uzum, a leading digital services ecosystem in Uzbekistan, raised $114 million through a combination of a Series A funding round and debt financing, making it the first tech company in Uzbekistan to achieve unicorn status.
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