Kalshi draws $8.8M volume on AI IPOs, Mars missions, and Greenland acquisition
Kalshi recorded $8.8 million in trading volume on contracts covering AI IPOs, Mars missions, and a potential US acquisition of Greenland, according to Startuphub.ai data published May 31 and June 1. The activity reflects bettor interest in long-dated, geopolitically unusual events alongside technology outcomes. The Greenland market alone drew millions of dollars as traders speculated on US strategic interest in the territory. The $8.8 million figure comes as broader prediction market volume hit a record $28.4 billion in May, with Kalshi leading the month at $17.3 billion — up 29 percent from April and representing about 61 percent of total market volume, per Digitaltoday.co.kr. Polymarket recorded $8.4 billion during the same period.
Kalshi's $17.3 billion May total locks in its first sustained monthly lead over Polymarket's $8.4 billion after flipping the crypto volume lead just days earlier, giving Kalshi hard volume evidence for its $1 billion Series F pitch that regulated markets can drain offshore liquidity.
Joins a record-setting May across the sector where prediction markets hit $28.4 billion in monthly volume, with Kalshi and Polymarket now trading blows on crypto, geopolitical, and event-contract fronts as both face stripped federal-preemption defenses and concurrent state enforcement.