Country comparison
China vs Saudi Arabia: startup funding compared
Since 6 June 2025, startups in China raised $28.3B across 64 rounds, 29.0 times Saudi Arabia's $976M.
Capital raised running total by month
Where the money goes share of capital by sector
China
Saudi Arabia
Biggest rounds
Saudi Arabia
Stage mix share of rounds
Most active investors rounds joined
| Investor | China | Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|---|
| Qiming Venture Partners | 7 | · |
| IDG Capital | 6 | · |
| 500 Global | · | 5 |
| 5Y Capital | 5 | · |
| Impact46 | · | 5 |
| COTU Ventures | · | 4 |
| LAV | 4 | · |
| Merak Capital | · | 4 |
| MPCi | 4 | · |
| Tencent | 4 | · |
| BioTrack Capital | 3 | · |
| HSG | 3 | · |
Startup hubs rounds and capital by city
China
Saudi Arabia
Latest rounds
Questions
Which country raised more startup funding, China or Saudi Arabia?
China. Since 6 June 2025, startups in China raised $28.3B across 64 rounds, against $976M across 42 rounds in Saudi Arabia, 29.0 times more. That is 4.0% and 0.1% of all the capital FundraiseBase tracked worldwide over the period.
How many startup funding rounds were announced in China and Saudi Arabia?
64 rounds in China and 42 rounds in Saudi Arabia since 6 June 2025, about 4 and 2 a month.
Are startup rounds bigger in China or Saudi Arabia?
The median round is $112M in China and $3.5M in Saudi Arabia, and the average round $441M and $23.2M. The median shows the typical round; the average is pulled up by a few very large ones.
What is the biggest startup round in China?
The biggest startup rounds in China since 6 June 2025 are DeepSeek ($15B, 22 Oct 2026), Moonshot AI ($3.5B, Series F, 30 Jul 2026) and StepFun ($717M, 26 Jan 2026).
What is the biggest startup round in Saudi Arabia?
The biggest startup rounds in Saudi Arabia since 6 June 2025 are barq ($330M, Series A, 15 Sept 2026), Ninja ($254M, Growth, 8 Jul 2025) and Gathern ($72.1M, Series B, 20 Aug 2025).
Which sectors attract the most startup funding in China and Saudi Arabia?
In China, AI ($23.8B, 84% of the capital), Robotics & Hardware ($2.1B, 8%) and Health ($765M, 3%) lead. In Saudi Arabia, Fintech ($485M, 50% of the capital), Consumer ($257M, 26%) and Enterprise software ($116M, 12%) lead.
Is China or Saudi Arabia better for early-stage startups?
Early-stage rounds (Pre-Seed, Seed and Series A) make up 27% of rounds in China and 79% in Saudi Arabia. China recorded 6 Pre-Seed or Seed rounds and Saudi Arabia 24 Pre-Seed or Seed rounds, with a median of $41.9M and $1.7M.
How much growth funding (Series B and later) goes to China and Saudi Arabia?
Startups in China raised $6.1B in 19 Series B or later rounds, 22% of the country's capital. In Saudi Arabia, $132M in 3 rounds, 14% of the capital.
Who are the most active startup investors in China?
Qiming Venture Partners (7 rounds, 2 led), IDG Capital (6 rounds, 5 led) and 5Y Capital (5 rounds) are the most active investors in China.
Who are the most active startup investors in Saudi Arabia?
Impact46 (5 rounds, 3 led), 500 Global (5 rounds) and Merak Capital (4 rounds, 3 led) are the most active investors in Saudi Arabia.
Which investors back startups in both China and Saudi Arabia?
No investor in FundraiseBase joined rounds in both countries yet.
Which cities lead startup funding in China and Saudi Arabia?
Beijing leads China with $6.8B across 19 rounds, ahead of Shanghai ($1.2B). Riyadh leads Saudi Arabia with $920M across 27 rounds, ahead of Jeddah ($1.2M).
Which month brought the most startup funding?
In China, October 2026 ($15.5B). In Saudi Arabia, September 2026 ($364M).
How much did startups in China and Saudi Arabia raise in the last 90 days?
In the 90 days to 9 Nov 2026, startups in China raised $17.3B across 14 rounds and in Saudi Arabia $381M across 9 rounds.
Where does this data come from?
FundraiseBase lists startup funding rounds from public announcements: press releases, company posts and news coverage, checked and updated every day. Amounts are in US dollars. Some rounds are never announced, so the figures show what was made public, not every round. Corrections are welcome.