Overview
DeepSeek, the Hangzhou-based artificial intelligence developer that gained international attention with its cost-efficient models in 2025, is preparing another equity fundraising round at a valuation of about 500 billion yuan, according to people briefed on the matter. The planned round comes shortly after the company completed a June financing that valued it at roughly 450 billion yuan post-money and raised about $7.4 billion, the people said.
Size and timing of the proposed round
Sources familiar with DeepSeek's plans said the company is considering raising as much as 50 billion yuan in the new financing. The fundraising deliberations are at an early stage and terms and a timetable could change, the sources cautioned. DeepSeek has not publicly commented on the potential round.
Onshore IPO discussions
In parallel with the fundraising effort, DeepSeek has begun preliminary discussions about a possible initial public offering on Shanghai's STAR Market, a Nasdaq-style exchange focused on technology companies, the sources said. The company has set an internal objective of completing an IPO filing this year, according to one person briefed on the discussions. The IPO planning is in early phases and subject to revision, the sources added.
Why DeepSeek is seeking more capital
Back-to-back fundraising activity highlights both strong investor demand for one of China's most closely watched AI companies and the growing capital intensity of competing at the technology's leading edge. Building and operating large AI models requires substantial computing capacity, data-centre expansion and specialized engineering hires - areas DeepSeek has indicated will need more resources.
Following the June financing, DeepSeek said it planned to roughly double headcount across departments, including teams focused on data centres and development of AI agents, systems designed to carry out tasks with limited prompting. The company has also initiated projects that are expected to require significant capital expenditure.
Chip development and hiring
Recent reporting indicated DeepSeek is looking into building its own AI inference chip and has discreetly expanded recruitment of chip-design engineers for that effort. Such a move, if pursued at scale, would add to the company's hardware-related spending requirements.
Funding history and shareholder mix
DeepSeek had long been notable in China for avoiding external funding. Founder Liang Wenfeng had mainly financed the company using capital from his quantitative hedge fund High-Flyer before the recent external rounds, sources previously told reporters. In the June financing, Liang personally committed 20 billion yuan. Major external investors in that round included Tencent Holdings, which invested 10 billion yuan, and battery maker CATL, which contributed 5 billion yuan. Other participants included the state-backed national AI fund, NetEase, JD.com, and investment firms such as IDG Capital, Loyal Valley Capital, Monolith Management and Shixiang Capital.
Strategic importance and competition
The involvement of the state-backed AI fund was highlighted by observers as an indicator of the firm's strategic relevance to Beijing's push to develop domestic AI champions and reduce dependence on foreign technologies. DeepSeek has faced mounting competition at home from major technology groups including ByteDance and Alibaba, as well as from well-funded AI startups such as Z.ai, Moonshot and MiniMax.
Reporting and caveats
Media outlets have previously reported on DeepSeek's potential IPO and on talks about fresh fundraising at elevated valuations. The company has not issued a public statement on the current plans, and the people who described the fundraising and listing considerations asked not to be identified because the information is not public. They said the plans remain early, and that specifics - including valuation, size and timing - could change.
Currency reference
The reporting included a currency conversion of $1 = 6.7704 Chinese yuan renminbi, which aligns the yuan-denominated valuation to the roughly $74 billion figure quoted for the 500 billion yuan valuation.
Summary of facts
- DeepSeek is planning a potential fundraising at about 500 billion yuan valuation.
- The company raised about $7.4 billion in June at a post-money valuation of roughly 450 billion yuan.
- DeepSeek may seek as much as 50 billion yuan in the new round and is in early talks about a STAR Market IPO, internally targeting an IPO filing this year.