Report: DeepSeek Raises 105.5 Billion Yuan in Second Funding Round, State Capital Share Jumps to 27%
Details emerge for DeepSeek's second funding round, raising 105.5 billion yuan with participation from Tencent, CATL, and others, while state capital's share rises significantly.
According to reports from China News Jingwei and other media outlets on November 1, details of AI startup DeepSeek's second funding round have emerged. The round raised 105.5 billion yuan (approximately $15.8 billion USD), attracting nearly 30 investors.
The investor list shows that Tencent Holdings and Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited (CATL) remain the two major backers. Tencent contributed 10 billion yuan in both rounds; CATL and its chairman Zeng Yuqun contributed 5 billion yuan and 10 billion yuan respectively across the two rounds. Other industrial investors include ChangXin Memory Technologies, SMIC, vivo, Meituan-WR, Geely Auto, Midea Group, Luxshare Precision, Trip.com, and Xiaohongshu, with some individual investments ranging between 1 billion and 3 billion yuan.
Notably, state capital accounted for approximately 27% of this round's funding, a significant increase from 2% in the first round. Cumulatively, tech companies contributed about 42% and state investors about 19%. Foreign media reported that rising prices for Nvidia high-end chips and concerns about an AI industry bubble were reasons for DeepSeek doubling its fundraising target mid-process.