2025 was a turbulent year for data buyers. Geopolitical events, such as a swathe of tariffing, produced an environment of uncertainty among investors. Other market movements, including the maturing role of AI and some significant M&A in the data world, also influenced this year’s trends. Below, we attempt to make sense of what happened and its impacts for data users.

In 2025, investors continued to seek signals from an array of sources, with some of the most popular categories being location data, clickstream analysis, human capital metrics and market data. However, this year’s most significant shifts were concentrated in specific segments, driven by major geopolitical and technological events.