DeepSeek reportedly raises $15bn in China's AI round

Two days after U.S. federal agencies ordered the removal of DeepSeek’s AI technology from their systems because of security concerns, the Hangzhou‑based startup announced it had raised roughly 100 billion yuan ($15 billion) in a new funding round. Bloomberg and TechCrunch reported that the round is one of the largest ever in China, and the money will help the company expand its AI infrastructure and open‑source models for both domestic and international customers. The funding follows an earlier June round that brought in more than $7 billion at a $50 billion valuation, and a July push that added $1.5 billion at a $71 billion valuation.

Investor lineup details

The round was led by Tencent, the operator of WeChat, and battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (CATL). New backers included Midea, Meituan, Geely and semiconductor maker GigaDevice, while private‑equity firms Boyu Capital, CPE and Legend Capital also joined. Existing shareholder IDG Capital stayed on board, and the total number of investors is reported to have exceeded 15.

Reuters said the investment values DeepSeek at about 500 billion yuan before the new capital is injected, giving the company a substantial valuation boost.

DeepSeek has hired CITIC Securities to help prepare for a potential initial public offering on Shanghai’s STAR Market, a move that would bring it into the same arena as China’s other AI leaders. The funding round is seen as a step toward that listing and also as a way to compete with U.S. firms such as Anthropic and OpenAI, each of which has raised more than $100 billion.

The company’s low‑cost, high‑performance models have already shaken domestic rivals. In September it released V4.1 Flash, a move that pushed the shares of MiniMax and Z.AI lower, and it has attracted attention from other Chinese AI firms such as Moonshot AI and Manus AI, which have raised billions in recent months.