Key facts
- DeepSeek secured a post-investment valuation of approximately 400 billion yuan ($59.2 billion).
- The Series A funding round raised around 50 billion yuan ($7.4 billion).
- Founder and CEO Liang Wenfeng personally invested approximately 20 billion yuan ($2.96 billion).
- The investment makes DeepSeek one of China's most valuable AI startups.
- DeepSeek's focus remains on enhancing AI model intelligence and pursuing AGI.
Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek has closed its first external fundraising round, achieving a post-investment valuation of approximately 400 billion yuan (US$59.2 billion) after raising around 50 billion yuan (US$7.4 billion).
This landmark deal positions DeepSeek as one of China's most valuable AI startups, surpassing the valuations of Moonshot AI and MiniMax AI, though still trailing Zhipu AI. Contrary to earlier speculation, DeepSeek's founder and CEO, Liang Wenfeng, emerged as the largest investor in the round, contributing nearly half of the total funds from his own pocket.
Liang's significant personal investment ensures he retains control over the company's strategic direction as it pursues artificial general intelligence (AGI). He emphasized to investors that DeepSeek's sole focus is on enhancing the intelligence of AI models.