DeepSeek raises about $15 billion in latest funding round, Bloomberg reports
In brief
- DeepSeek raised about 100 billion yuan ($15 billion), Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
- Fundraising target reportedly rose from 50 billion yuan to 80 billion yuan before the final figure.
- Contemporary Amperex Technology and Tencent were among the biggest investors, according to the report.
- DeepSeek hasn't confirmed the round; separate reports say it's considering a public listing.
What the report says
The round got bigger as it went. According to the Bloomberg report, DeepSeek raised its target from an initial 50 billion yuan to 80 billion yuan before settling on the final amount. Contemporary Amperex Technology (a leading battery maker) and Tencent Holdings were among the biggest investors, the report said.
The money also arrives as DeepSeek prepares for a potential IPO. Be careful with that part. The reports say the company is considering a public listing, not that it has scheduled one.
For scale, OpenAI and Anthropic have each raised well over $100 billion, though their totals include different financing structures (so it isn't a clean comparison).
From hedge fund project to global lab
DeepSeek traces its origins to High-Flyer's push into artificial general intelligence research in 2023. Liang Wenfeng, who co-founded the quantitative hedge fund in 2015, oversaw that initiative. The lab was established as an independent research group in May 2023 and incorporated in Hangzhou later that year.
Its breakout came in 2025, when its low-cost models showed capabilities comparable with leading US systems and the company gained prominence in the global AI industry. Since then, it's increased spending on data-center infrastructure and open-weight model development for use in China and overseas.
A crowded field at home
The competition isn't only with US labs. The September launch of DeepSeek's V4.1 Flash was followed by share declines at MiniMax and Z.AI, according to Crypto Briefing. Alibaba, ByteDance and other Chinese technology companies are also rolling out lower-cost AI services, many of them built on open models.
That's the market a $15 billion war chest would be deployed into, if the reported figure holds. DeepSeek hasn't confirmed the round's size, and the report doesn't include comment from the company or its investors. It also doesn't say how the capital will be split between infrastructure and model development.
Frequently asked questions
Who invested in DeepSeek's reported $15 billion round?
According to the Bloomberg report relayed by Crypto Briefing, Contemporary Amperex Technology, a leading battery maker, and Tencent Holdings were among the biggest investors. DeepSeek hasn't confirmed the round, and LeoDex News couldn't independently verify it.
Where did DeepSeek come from?
DeepSeek traces its origins to High-Flyer's push into artificial general intelligence research in 2023. Liang Wenfeng, who co-founded the quantitative hedge fund in 2015, oversaw the effort. DeepSeek was established as an independent research group in May 2023 and incorporated in Hangzhou later that year.
