Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek has secured more than 50 billion yuan, or approximately $7.40 billion, in its debut funding round, according to a report published Tuesday by the Information. The company’s valuation now exceeds $50 billion.
What makes the deal stand out is its unusual structure: rather than investing directly into DeepSeek, participants were required to place their money into a limited partnership overseen by DeepSeek CEO Liang Wenfeng. The arrangement appears designed to keep decision-making power concentrated with the founder.
Under the terms of the deal, investors are subject to a five-year lock-up period and will not receive any voting rights, the Information reported.
One notable exception is China’s National Artificial Intelligence Industry Investment Fund, which invested directly into DeepSeek and retains both voting rights and the ability to exit without the lock-up restriction.
Reuters had previously reported this month that CEO Liang personally committed 20 billion yuan of his own funds to the round. Tech conglomerate Tencent is reportedly considering a 10 billion yuan investment, while battery manufacturer CATL is looking at contributing 5 billion yuan — moves that would make them the largest outside investors if finalized.
DeepSeek rose to international prominence early last year after its V3 and R1 artificial intelligence models earned significant praise from the technology community in Silicon Valley. The models sparked a broader conversation about China’s growing capabilities in AI development and challenged widely held assumptions in the United States about where China stood in the global AI race.
Reuters said it was unable to immediately confirm the details of the funding report, and DeepSeek was not immediately available for comment.
