Frontier Tech Titans: The 2026 Midas List and the Rise of AI, Defense, and Space Investing

Forbes’ 2026 Midas List ranks eight venture capitalists whose early stakes in artificial-intelligence, defense, space-infrastructure and fusion firms now dominate private-market value. Their positions in OpenAI, Anthropic, SpaceX, Anduril, Commonwealth Fusion Systems and related companies propelled them to the top of the list.

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The Midas List began in 2001 after the dot-com crash, rewarding winners of the early internet era. Over two decades it shifted focus from networking and e-commerce to frontier sectors, with AI now accounting for a large share of private valuations and defense, space and AI-native applications moving to core Silicon Valley.

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Vinod Khosla (Khosla Ventures) invested $50 million in OpenAI and $115 million in Commonwealth Fusion Systems. Elad Gil (Gil & Co.) backed OpenAI and led Perplexity AI’s $3.1 million seed round. Trae Stephens (Founders Fund) co-founded Anduril, securing a $1 billion investment at a $30.5 billion valuation. Mamoon Hamid (Kleiner Perkins) backed Alif Semiconductor and Glean. Yasmin Razavi (Spark Capital) led Anthropic’s $450 million Series C and early backing of Deel. Hemant Taneja (General Catalyst) supported Stripe and Hippocratic AI. Shaun Maguire (Sequoia) focused on SpaceX and Safe Superintelligence. Randy Glein (DFJ Growth) invested early in SpaceX.

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OpenAI is valued at $852 billion and is fast-tracking an IPO. Anthropic raised $450 million in a Series C in 2023 and is now among the most valuable private AI companies. Anduril secured a $1 billion check at a $30.5 billion valuation, while Vannevar Labs raised $75 million at $575 million. Safe Superintelligence reached a $32 billion pre-product valuation; Deel is now worth $17.3 billion.

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Capital clustering in AI, defense and energy indicates these sectors will drive the next industrial era. Large models increase demand for specialized chips, data-center networking and high-capacity power, linking frontier bets into a single growth engine.

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Khosla calls his approach a pursuit of “black-swan” technologies that can reshape industries. Razavi emphasizes a “prepared mind,” studying markets before committing. Maguire describes his portfolio as “atoms” companies building foundational infrastructure. Glein sees his holdings as a unified thesis on AI, energy and defense.

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The article notes that, despite record private valuations, venture-fund returns have underperformed public-market benchmarks over the same period.

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• “Khosla has often described his strategy as backing “black swan” technologies – companies capable of fundamentally reshaping industries if they succeed.” — Vinod Khosla, Khosla Ventures

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• “Razavi has described her approach as developing a “prepared mind,” spending months studying markets before companies emerge, allowing her to move decisively once the right opportunity appears.” — Yasmin Razavi, Spark Capital

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• “Maguire calls many of these investments “atoms” companies: businesses building foundational infrastructure across space, defense and frontier technology.” — Shaun Maguire, Sequoia

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• “He aims for technological transformation.” — Vinod Khosla, Khosla Ventures

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OpenAI, Anthropic and SpaceX are preparing for potential trillion-dollar IPOs. Investors are expected to deepen funding for AI chips, autonomous defense platforms and next-generation fusion reactors.

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