Deal Drivers: Americas provides an in-depth review of M&A activity in the first quarter of 2026 and an outlook for the year ahead.

A region running hot

In Q1 2026, the total value of dealmaking in the Americas rose 35.6% year-on-year to US$821bn in total value, and volume slipped just 3.6% to 3,782 transactions. This is almost entirely an American story of oversubscribed AI mega-rounds and major energy plays.

Smart bets

TMT value surged 52.3% to US$301.8bn as capital crowded into AI model developers at premium valuations, while volume dipped 4.9% to 999 deals, representing a decisive shift toward later-stage financings. All that model training requires compute and raw power, with EMU sector value climbing 53.7% to US$148.4bn on sharply higher energy-demand forecasts.

AI takeover

Breaking its own record twice in quick succession, OpenAI secured US$122bn for its latest round, the largest in history and biggest deal in Q1. The round was anchored by Amazon, NVIDIA, and SoftBank, with continued participation from Microsoft. The funding will accelerate frontier model development and hyperscale data center build-out.

Published in association with Datasite. The report is also available on datasite.com.