Dec 17 (Reuters) - Databricks has secured a $62 billion

valuation after raising $10 billion in one of the largest

venture capital funding rounds in history, underscoring the

unprecedented appetite for AI-focused startups.

The round, led by Joshua Kushner's Thrive Capital, drew

investments from elite firms, including Andreessen Horowitz, DST

Global, GIC, Insight Partners, and WCM Investment Management.

Existing backer Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan and new

investors ICONIQ Growth, MGX, Sands Capital, and Wellington

Management also participated.

The round surpasses the $6.6 billion raised by

OpenAI

in October, reflecting a massive appetite for companies

simplifying AI integration and driving soaring valuations for

startups like the Microsoft ( MSFT )-backed AI pioneer and

Elon Musk's xAI

.

"These are still the early days of AI," said Ali Ghodsi,

co-founder and CEO of Databricks, adding that the round was

"substantially oversubscribed."

Databricks will invest the funds in new AI products and

acquisitions. It will also let some employees cash out their

stock, which comprises a significant chunk of the compensation

at startups.

The company competes with Snowflake, which has

a market capitalization of about $57 billion. Databricks expects

to achieve positive free cash flow for the first time in the

quarter that ended Jan. 31 and to cross the $3 billion revenue

run rate in January.

The San Francisco, California-based company enables its

10,000 customers, including Jack Dorsey-led payments firm Block

, telecom giant Comcast ( CMCSA ), electric vehicle maker

Rivian and energy company Shell to analyze

data.

Reuters

reported

on the deal talks last week.