DeepSeek is launching a massive initial funding round! And the most surprising figure doesn't come from Tencent.
According to Reuters, the company aims to raise ~$7.4B, bringing its post-money valuation to between $52B to $59B. This would mark the largest AI funding round in China to date.
Among the investors:
🔹 Founder Liang Wenfeng contributes ~$3B personally
🔹 Tencent invests ~$1.5B
🔹 Battery manyfacturer CATL invests ~$0.7B as it expands into supplying power for AI data centers
🔹 NetEase, http://JD.com, and China's national AI fund are in talks to join
🔹 Hong Kong's IDG Capital and Cornerstone Capital are also among the intended investors
The deal is expected to close in about two weeks. After operating as a self-funded research lab for years, DeepSeek is finally accepting outside capital, though Liang remains the largest single investor.