DeepSeek raises €12.9 billion from Tencent, CATL and other investors ahead of IPO
DeepSeek has raised about 100 billion yuan (€12.9 billion; $15 billion), with Tencent and battery maker CATL among its largest investors, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the deal. The Hangzhou-based AI company is increasing spending on data centres and open-source models as it prepares for an IPO, though Reuters reported the round was still being finalised and its terms could change.
Bottom line — DeepSeek’s final funding terms and IPO plans remain unconfirmed.
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Bloomberg reported that DeepSeek lifted its fundraising target from 50 billion yuan (€6.4 billion; $7.49 billion) to 80 billion yuan (€10.3 billion; $12 billion) before reaching the reported total.
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Reuters, as reported by China Daily and GPTOnline, said the round was expected to close in the coming days and that financial terms could still change.
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Finimize reported a possible pre-money valuation of 500 billion yuan (€64.5 billion) and a post-money valuation near 600 billion yuan (€77.3 billion); it described these as reported figures.
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Tech in Asia reported that DeepSeek, Tencent and CATL did not respond to requests for comment.
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China Daily reported that DeepSeek earns most of its revenue by charging businesses and developers for model access through an API.