Global AI Investment Report Q1 2026: Total Funding Reaches $45 Billion, Chinese AI Unicorns Accelerate Rise

According to PitchBook and CB Insights data for Q1 2026, global AI funding reached $45 billion, up 85% year-over-year. Anthropic completed a $4 billion Series C, Perplexity AI hit a $9 billion valuation, and China's Zhipu AI, Baichuan Intelligence, and Moonshot AI each surpassed $1 billion in valuation. This article reviews hot investment tracks (AI agents, embodied intelligence, AI infrastructure), major VC strategies, and which sub-sectors are showing signs of a bubble.