DeepSeek eyes $71B valuation in new round weeks after raising $7.4B

Chinese AI startup DeepSeek has begun preliminary talks with investors about raising fresh capital at a pre-money valuation of approximately $71 billion, less than a month after closing a record-breaking $7.4 billion maiden fundraising round, according to the Financial Times.

Rapid Valuation Jump

The new round, first reported by the Financial Times on Monday and confirmed by Bloomberg and Reuters, would represent a roughly 42 percent increase over the company's post-money valuation of more than $50 billion achieved in its June round. DeepSeek started discussions this week with potential backers for the fresh funding, which is aimed at expanding its AI infrastructure, Reuters reported.bloomberg+2

The speed of the follow-on effort underscores the intense demand for stakes in DeepSeek, which burst onto the global stage in January 2025 when its open-source models triggered a selloff in AI-related stocks including Nvidia ↗ 0.54%. The company had long resisted outside capital before opening its doors to investors earlier this year.reuters+1

A Unique Investment Structure

DeepSeek's first round, which closed in mid-June, raised more than 50 billion yuan — approximately $7.4 billion — making it one of the largest private AI investments in Chinese history. Founder Liang Wenfeng contributed 20 billion yuan of his own funds, while Tencent invested 10 billion yuan and battery giant CATL Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Limited put in 5 billion yuan as the largest outside backers.reuters+2

The deal's structure drew widespread attention. As reported by The Information and Forbes, outside investors received no voting rights and face a five-year lock-up period, with their capital funneled into a limited partnership controlled by Liang rather than direct equity. The sole exception was China's state-backed National Artificial Intelligence Industry Investment Fund, which received direct ownership and voting privileges.forbes+1

Intensifying AI Competition

The push for additional capital comes as DeepSeek faces mounting competition from U.S. rivals. The Information reported in late June that Anthropic's Mythos model helped spur DeepSeek's initial fundraising decision, and that the company plans to double its workforce and embrace Huawei chips to reduce reliance on restricted Nvidia hardware.theinformation+1

Even at $71 billion, DeepSeek's valuation would remain a fraction of its American counterparts — Anthropic was recently valued at roughly $965 billion and OpenAI at $852 billion, according to TechFundingNews. The terms of the new round, including whether it would carry similar restrictions on investor rights, have not been disclosed.techfundingnews