DeepSeek Secures $15 Billion Amid US Pushout

The tension between Washington and Beijing over artificial intelligence reached a boiling point this week. Just two days after the United States mandated that federal civilian agencies remove DeepSeek’s technology from their infrastructure due to security risks, the Hangzhou-based startup announced it had raised approximately $15 billion. This sum, equivalent to roughly 100 billion yuan, represents one of the largest funding events in China’s history, signaling a defiant push forward despite the regulatory headwinds.

The capital injection is coming from heavyweights in the Chinese tech and industrial sectors. According to reports, potential investors include Tencent, the giant behind the WeChat messaging platform, and CATL, a leading manufacturer of batteries. This coalition of corporate giants suggests a strategic alignment between China’s consumer tech leaders and its industrial backbone to bolster DeepSeek’s position in the global market.

This latest raise follows a rapid succession of financial milestones for the company. In June, DeepSeek secured over $7 billion at a valuation of $50 billion. By July, it was reportedly seeking an additional $1.5 billion at a higher valuation of approximately $71 billion. These moves were accompanied by plans for a potential initial public offering in China as early as next year, indicating a trajectory toward public markets that remains intact despite the recent U.S. restrictions.

The company intends to deploy these funds aggressively. DeepSeek is ramping up spending on AI infrastructure and developing open models for both domestic and international audiences. This expansion is expected to intensify competition among its domestic rivals. The move underscores a broader trend where investors are pouring billions into AI firms worldwide, particularly in China, to secure a competitive edge in the global race. Peers like Moonshot AI, which raised $2 billion in May, and Manus AI, which secured over $500 million earlier this month, are part of this same wave of investment. Publicly listed competitors Z.ai and MiniMax currently hold market capitalizations of roughly $29 billion and $7.2 billion, respectively.

Founded in 2023 by Liang Wenfeng, a co-founder of the quantitative hedge fund High-Flyer, DeepSeek gained global traction in early 2025 with its free, open-weight reasoning model. The platform challenged the dominance of American AI firms and established DeepSeek as a key player. Following the earlier funding rounds, corporate ownership data indicates that Liang retains an estimated 81.6% stake in the company’s Chinese operating entity. As of now, DeepSeek has not responded to requests for comment regarding the new funding round.