Startup Trends: Q2 2026’s most in-demand private companies based on IOIs

Funding rounds and headline valuations often dominate the conversation around private markets. But another signal can be revealing: investor demand.

Every bid placed on Forge's marketplace represents an investor actively seeking exposure to a specific private company. These indications of interest can reveal where investors believe future potential opportunity exists.

During the second quarter of 2026, these ten companies generated the highest volume of active buy-side indications of interest on Forge's marketplace and captured the greatest attention from accredited investors.

1. Anduril

Defense technology continues to attract significant private capital, and Anduril remains one of the industry's fastest-growing companies. The company develops autonomous defense systems, AI-enabled surveillance platforms and advanced military hardware for U.S. and allied governments.

Founded in 2017, the private company recently announced its first NATO contract secured. The NATO Communications Information Agency (NCIA) selected Anduril’s Lattice technology platform to enable its air command and control intelligence systems, according to the company.¹ The partnership underscores Anduril’s increasingly trusted platform across governmental agencies.

Costa Mesa, CA-based Anduril tops the list with the most investor bids placed in the second quarter. The defense company’s Forge Price™ is $116.68 as of July 16, 2026, implying a valuation of $103.23 billion. Anduril’s notable investors include Founders Fund, Andreessen Horowitz, 8VC and Human Capital.

2. OpenAI

Few private companies have reshaped an industry as quickly as San Francisco, CA-based OpenAI. Following the widespread adoption of ChatGPT and continued expansion into enterprise AI and developer tools, OpenAI remains one of the most sought-after companies in private markets. It ranks second on the list of investor demand for Q2.

Founded in 2015, the private AI company announced it was partnering with technology giant Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPE). The strategic partnership enables HP to roll out AI capabilities across its consumer and employee facing platforms, dubbed OpenAI Frontier, according to the company. Through initial pilot testing last year, HP believes the initiative will help it scale across operations, governance and client productivity.² The HP partnership is one of several with big-name technology companies since its founding.

OpenAI’s Forge Price™ is $721.85 as of July 16, 2026, implying a valuation of $894.33 billion. The company’s investors include Thrive Capital, Khosla Ventures, Microsoft and Andreessen Horowitz.

3. Databricks

The third company on the list is San Francisco, CA-based analytics firm Databricks. Databricks has emerged from solely a data intelligence platform to one that powers enterprise AI solutions. By combining large-scale data management with machine learning infrastructure, the company has become a critical technology provider for businesses’ AI applications.

Founded in 2013, the company is now seeking new funding. In June, it was reported that Databricks has been in discussions to raise capital for its operations at a valuation of up to $175 billion. The potential round underscores investors’ enthusiasm for enterprise AI solutions, and it comes as speculation grows for a potential public debut sometime next year.³

Databricks’ Forge Price™ is $242.04 as of July 16, 2026, implying a valuation of $170.7 billion. Notable investors in Databricks include Andreessen Horowitz, Insight Partners, Capital One Ventures and Blackrock.

4. Stripe

Founded in 2010, San Francisco, CA-based Stripe has long been one of private markets’ most recognizable fintech companies. Processing payments for millions of businesses globally, the company has expanded into financial infrastructure and business banking solutions. Stripe ranks number four in companies with highest Q2 demand.

In June, Stripe announced its latest partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS), underscoring its earned trust among technology partners. In the deal, Stripe will provide AWS with payment infrastructure necessary to allow its content producers to monetize AI agent traffic. Stripe will also allow content makers to receive payment directly into their bank accounts, rather than intermediaries.⁴

Stripe’s Forge Price™ as of July 16, 2026, is $72.45, implying a valuation of $180.01 billion. The private company’s institutional investors include Khosla Ventures, Redpoint Ventures, Founders Fund and Andreessen Horowitz.

5. Kalshi

Number five on the list for last quarter is Kalshi. Founded in 2018, Kalshi emerged as one of the most closely followed financial technology companies by creating regulated event prediction markets that allowed users to trade on the outcomes of real-world events. As prediction markets gain wider adoption, investors are viewing Kalshi as a company helping define an entirely new asset class within financial markets.

In June, the private company announced it was partnering with the global leader in electronic trading, Tradeweb Markets, Inc. (Nasdaq: TW). The partnership allows Tradeweb to provide a data platform powered by Kalshi, one where institutional clients can track key event contracts across a variety of markets and risk.⁵

New York, NY-based Kalshi’s Forge Price™ stands at $604.86 as of July 16, 2026. Its notable investors include Coatue Management, Sequoia Capital, Paradigm and Global Founders Capital.

6. Ayar Labs

As artificial intelligence models become larger and data centers demand greater computing performance, one challenge has become increasingly apparent: moving data fast enough between chips. Enter the sixth company on the quarterly list, San Jose, CA-based Ayar Labs, an optical interconnect technology firm focused on improving bandwidth and reducing power consumption for AI infrastructures.

Founded in 2015, Ayar Labs struck a major partnership in June. The private company teamed up with NVIDIA (Nasdaq: NVDA), supporting the chipmaker with its optical technology for the NVLINK Fusion platform. Both companies expect the deal to increase AI-enabled workflow efficiencies for NVIDIA and other AI end users.⁶

Ayar Labs’ Forge Price™ is $62.72 as of July 16, 2026, implying a valuation of $4.50 billion. The firm’s institutional investors include Light Street Capital, GlobalFoundries, ARK Invest and MediaTek.

7. Physical Intelligence

San Francisco, CA-based Physical Intelligence ranks number seven on the list of companies with the highest investor demand in the second quarter. Founded in 2024, the early-stage startup is developing foundational models that allow robots to perform complex physical tasks across multiple environments. Rather than building software for a single robot, the company is focused on creating generalized intelligence capable of powering many different robotic platforms.

In April, the robotics company unveiled its new model, π0.7, a “teachable” robotic brain that can receive an explanation of a task from a human, then quickly perform the task on its own. This latest technology has the potential to be as groundbreaking as Large Language Models have been in recent years, according to the company.⁷

Physical Intelligence has quickly risen to a post-money valuation of $11.19 billion as of a May 2026 fundraising round. At the time, its price per share stood at $502.90. The private company’s slate of investors includes Thrive Capital, Jeff Bezos, Khosla Ventures and Sequoia Capital.

8. Project Prometheus

Project Prometheus has quickly attracted attention following its launch by Jeff Bezos and a team of prominent AI researchers and industry veterans. A newcomer to the quarterly list of highest bids, the company is pursuing industrial artificial intelligence applications designed to transform manufacturing, engineering and robotics.

Founded in 2025 and headquartered in San Francisco, CA, the early-stage startup has already raised $12 billion in a Series B funding round, putting its valuation at $41 billion. Project Prometheus aims to redesign how things are made and hopes to produce an “artificial general engineer” in the not-too-distant future.⁸

While there is some secrecy surrounding the company’s plans, the fact that it has gained so much capital early on, along with investor bids, underscores the intrigue and conviction around the company’s product potential. The June fundraise follows a Series A round of $10 billion earlier this year.⁹ Project Prometheus’ notable investors include JP Morgan Chase, BlackRock, Goldman Sachs and DST Global.

9. Starcloud

The ninth private company to join the list of high investor interest is Redmond, WA-based Starcloud. Starcloud is pursuing an ambitious vision of building computing infrastructure in space, where abundant solar energy and natural cooling could one day support AI data centers beyond Earth’s traditional power constraints.

Founded in 2024, the early-stage startup raised its Series A capital round in June of 2026, hauling in over $282 million. In March, it was reported that Starcloud had launched its first satellite using Nvidia chips in November of 2025, with expectations to do another launch of a much more powerful Starcloud 2 later this year. The pilot tests are expected to provide research and development for the first orbital data center from Starcloud in the near future.¹⁰

Starcloud’s last price per share is $53.75 as of its latest funding round in June. The private company’s notable investors include Benchmark, Y Combinator, Nebular and EQT Ventures.

10. Saronic

Austin, TX-based Saronic rounds out the list of ten companies with the highest investor demand for Q2 2026. Founded in 2022, Saronic is a defense technology company developing autonomous surface vehicles (ASVs), uncrewed, AI-powered boats designed to perform maritime missions for the U.S. Navy and allied defense forces.

In June, Saronic unveiled its latest unmanned surface vessel for defense and commercial use, dubbed Marauder. The launch is notable as Marauder, with its long-range design capabilities, was produced in Saronic’s shipyard in just under a year. That’s a speed not seen since WWII, according to the company. Saronic has hopes to continue at that speed and scale as its manufacturing facilities grow in size and efficiency.¹¹

Saronic’s Forge Price™ is $29.62 as of July 16, 2026, implying a valuation of $9.98 billion. The defense company’s investors include 8vc, Andreessen Horowitz, Cubit Capital and Ensemble VC.