Country comparison
China vs United Arab Emirates: startup funding compared
Since 6 June 2025, startups in China raised $28.3B across 64 rounds, 16.7 times the United Arab Emirates' $1.7B.
Capital raised running total by month
Where the money goes share of capital by sector
China
United Arab Emirates
Biggest rounds
United Arab Emirates
Stage mix share of rounds
Most active investors rounds joined
| Investor | China | United Arab Emirates |
|---|---|---|
| Qiming Venture Partners | 7 | · |
| IDG Capital | 6 | · |
| 5Y Capital | 5 | · |
| Plus VC | · | 5 |
| HSG | 3 | 1 |
| LAV | 4 | · |
| MPCi | 4 | · |
| Oraseya Capital | · | 4 |
| Tencent | 4 | · |
| BioTrack Capital | 3 | · |
| Legend Capital | 2 | 1 |
| OrbiMed | 3 | · |
Startup hubs rounds and capital by city
China
United Arab Emirates
Latest rounds
Questions
Which country raised more startup funding, China or the United Arab Emirates?
China. Since 6 June 2025, startups in China raised $28.3B across 64 rounds, against $1.7B across 52 rounds in the United Arab Emirates, 16.7 times more. That is 4.0% and 0.2% of all the capital FundraiseBase tracked worldwide over the period.
How many startup funding rounds were announced in China and the United Arab Emirates?
64 rounds in China and 52 rounds in the United Arab Emirates since 6 June 2025, about 4 and 3 a month.
Are startup rounds bigger in China or the United Arab Emirates?
The median round is $112M in China and $4.5M in the United Arab Emirates, and the average round $441M and $32.6M. 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 the United Arab Emirates?
The biggest startup rounds in the United Arab Emirates since 6 June 2025 are Cadena ($275M, Series C, 10 Jun 2026), Moove ($250M, Series C, 5 Aug 2026) and Tabby ($233M, 15 Sept 2026).
Which sectors attract the most startup funding in China and the United Arab Emirates?
In China, AI ($23.8B, 84% of the capital), Robotics & Hardware ($2.1B, 8%) and Health ($765M, 3%) lead. In the United Arab Emirates, AI ($684M, 40% of the capital), Fintech ($384M, 23%) and Enterprise software ($62.5M, 4%) lead.
Is China or the United Arab Emirates better for early-stage startups?
Early-stage rounds (Pre-Seed, Seed and Series A) make up 27% of rounds in China and 65% in the United Arab Emirates. China recorded 6 Pre-Seed or Seed rounds and the United Arab Emirates 28 Pre-Seed or Seed rounds, with a median of $41.9M and $2M.
How much growth funding (Series B and later) goes to China and the United Arab Emirates?
Startups in China raised $6.1B in 19 Series B or later rounds, 22% of the country's capital. In the United Arab Emirates, $696M in 6 rounds, 41% 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 the United Arab Emirates?
Plus VC (5 rounds, 2 led), Oraseya Capital (4 rounds, 1 led) and Salica Oryx Fund (3 rounds, 1 led) are the most active investors in the United Arab Emirates.
Which investors back startups in both China and the United Arab Emirates?
2 investors joined rounds in both countries. The most active: HSG (3 in China, 1 in the United Arab Emirates) and Legend Capital (2 in China, 1 in the United Arab Emirates).
Which cities lead startup funding in China and the United Arab Emirates?
Beijing leads China with $6.8B across 19 rounds, ahead of Shanghai ($1.2B). Dubai leads the United Arab Emirates with $1.1B across 35 rounds, ahead of Abu Dhabi ($302M).
Which month brought the most startup funding?
In China, October 2026 ($15.5B). In the United Arab Emirates, January 2026 ($429M).
How much did startups in China and the United Arab Emirates 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 the United Arab Emirates $261M across 6 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.