Political groups linked to the cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence industries have amassed tens of millions of dollars, according to recent campaign finance reports, aiming to become key players in this year's midterm elections. The most prominent pro-crypto group, Fairshake, ended 2025 with nearly $194 million, almost all of it managed by Fairshake, a group backed by Coinbase and other venture capitalists, as per new reports filed with the Federal Election Commission. A pro-AI group, Leading the Future, ended the year with $39 million in its campaign account. These substantial war chests indicate that these groups could significantly influence primaries and general elections in the 2026 elections, aiming to support their preferred candidates from both parties and shape policy in Washington. Pro-crypto groups made their mark in the last election, with Fairshake and two aligned groups, Defend American Jobs and Protect Progress, spending a combined $290 million in 2024, according to campaign finance records. Notably, they spent heavily to help Ohio Republican Bernie Moreno defeat Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown, oppose Democratic Rep. Katie Porter's California Senate bid, and boost Arizona Democrat Ruben Gallego and Michigan Democrat Elissa Slotkin in their successful Senate bids. Leading the Future, a new group, has raised over $50 million from August 15 to December 31, with significant contributions from OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman and his wife Anna, and venture capitalists Marc Andreesen and Benjamin Horowitz. The group's donors include allies of President Donald Trump, and it is open to supporting candidates from both parties, which has frustrated some White House officials. So far, Leading the Future and its allied groups have announced plans to spend in two primaries for open House seats. They are opposing state Assemblyman Alex Bores, who sponsored AI safety legislation, in a New York City district to replace retiring Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler, and supporting attorney Chris Gober in a deep-red Texas House seat to replace retiring Republican Rep. Michael McCaul. Meanwhile, a super PAC linked to President Donald Trump, MAGA Inc., remains one of the biggest players in the political arena, with $304 million in the bank as of the end of 2025. Most of its fundraising from the second half of 2025 was already disclosed in a filing earlier this month, and the organization raised over $112 million over the six-month period, with significant contributions from those with business before the administration or facing legal jeopardy. While Trump won't be on the ballot in 2026 and isn't constitutionally eligible to run for president again, the super PAC's cash will help the president continue to exert his influence in the GOP. Tech billionaire Elon Musk has continued to donate millions to conventional Republican groups, seemingly patching up his relationship with Trump in recent months. Musk, once a close Trump ally and White House adviser, had a public break with Trump and even threatened to start a third party last year. Musk gave $5 million checks to the Senate Leadership Fund and Congressional Leadership Fund, the top super PACs aligned with the Senate and House GOP leadership, in December. He also gave $2.9 million, including in-kind contributions, to America PAC, his own political group that spent over a quarter-billion dollars last election cycle primarily to help Trump. While America PAC closed the year with little in its bank account, the staggering wealth of its main patron makes that number insignificant. In the second half of 2025, Senate Leadership Fund raised almost $77 million, closing the year with $100 million in the bank. Congressional Leadership Fund raised over $38 million over that period and finished 2025 with $54.5 million in cash on hand. On the Democratic side, House Majority PAC, the major outside group tasked with helping Democrats win control of the House, raised over $48 million and closed the year with $46 million in cash on hand. Senate Majority PAC, the group aligned with Senate Democratic leadership, had not yet filed its fundraising report by late Saturday evening. United Democracy Project, a pro-Israel group aligned with the American Israel Political Action Committee (AIPAC), raised over $61 million from July through December and ended 2025 with almost $96 million in the bank. The group wades into primaries on both sides of the aisle but largely plays in Democratic contests. Leaders We Deserve, a group led by activist David Hogg, announced last year it would target Democrats in deep-blue districts who were 'asleep at the wheel' as part of a $20 million effort to back young candidates. The group raised over $7.8 million in 2025, ending the year with nearly $2.3 million in its campaign account.
