DeepSeek prepares mainland China IPO filing for late 2026

Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek has begun preparations for an initial public offering on a mainland Chinese stock exchange, with a filing targeted for as soon as late 2026 and a public debut planned for 2027, Bloomberg reported on Monday. The move would mark one of China's largest technology listings in recent years.bloomberg

New Funding Round at a Sharp Premium

Just weeks after closing a record 50 billion yuan (approximately $7 billion) financing round, the Hangzhou-based company is already seeking additional capital. DeepSeek has begun talks with new backers about a fresh round targeting a pre-money valuation of at least 480 billion yuan, or roughly $71 billion — a 37% step-up from its previous valuation. The company is aiming to raise at least 10 billion yuan (about $1.5 billion) in the new round, though the final amount could go higher depending on investor demand.straitstimes+3

The earlier $7 billion round drew backing from Tencent, Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL), and the state-backed National Artificial Intelligence Industry Investment Fund.bloomberg

Path to a Mainland Listing

DeepSeek is in talks with accounting and banking advisors and working to complete its financial reports by the end of December, a necessary step for the IPO filing. Depending on when the financials are ready, the filing could come near the end of 2026 or early 2027.straitstimes+1

A listing at or near its current valuation would place DeepSeek among the most valuable AI companies globally, in the same tier as OpenAI and Anthropic. The IPO would also represent a milestone for China's domestic AI sector, which has attracted growing government support amid intensifying competition with the United States.

Ambitious Research Agenda

DeepSeek, which gained international attention earlier this year with its cost-efficient large language models, has said it is focused on long-term AI research rather than short-term profitability, with ambitions to achieve artificial general intelligence. The fresh capital is expected to bolster infrastructure spending and researcher recruitment.jawlah+1