Explainer
Unicorn
A private company valued at $1 billion or more
A startup that has reached a valuation of at least a billion dollars.
The term was coined in the early 2010s, when a billion-dollar private company seemed as rare as the mythical animal. Today there are hundreds of them.
Being a unicorn is a statement about the last price investors paid, not about revenue or profit. Some unicorns grow into public giants. Others are later valued far lower.
You may also hear decacorn, for companies above $10 billion, and hectocorn, for companies above $100 billion.
Illustrative explainers. Figures in examples are hypothetical.