DeepSeek reportedly raises $15B days after US restrictions
techcrunch ·
Chinese AI laboratory DeepSeek has reportedly secured a massive $15 billion funding round, approximately 100 billion yuan, just days after the U.S. government ordered federal agencies to remove its technology due to security concerns. Potential investors in this significant financing include major entities such as Tencent and battery manufacturer CATL. This latest capital injection follows previous fundraising efforts in June and July, which valued the company at up to $71 billion amid plans for a potential initial public offering in China. Despite facing restrictions in the United States, the Hangzhou-based startup is aggressively expanding its spending on AI infrastructure and open models for both domestic and international markets. The funding highlights the intense global competition in the artificial intelligence sector, with other Chinese firms like Moonshot AI and Manus AI also attracting substantial investment. DeepSeek, founded by Liang Wenfeng in 2023, gained global prominence in early 2025 with its open-weight reasoning model that challenged US dominance. Although the company did not immediately comment on the report, it remains heavily controlled by its founder who retains an estimated 81.6% stake in its Chinese operating entity.
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