DeepSeek Secures Major Funding

Chinese tech firm DeepSeek has raised over $7.4 billion in its inaugural funding round, elevating its valuation to more than $50 billion, as reported by The Information on Tuesday.

Instead of direct investments in DeepSeek, this funding arrangement requires contributors to channel their money into a limited partnership led by DeepSeek’s founder and CEO, Liang Wenfeng. This unique setup aims to give Liang complete control over the company. The Wall Street Journal noted that DeepSeek has now become China’s most valuable AI startup.

The funding deal includes a five-year lock-up period, preventing investors from selling their shares during this time. However, China’s National Artificial Intelligence Industry Investment Fund, which has invested 1 billion yuan in DeepSeek, is exempt from this restriction, according to the report.

DeepSeek did not respond to requests for comments regarding the funding.

In January 2025, DeepSeek gained significant attention after launching its mobile chatbot application and large-scale language model, DeepSeek-R1. The app quickly became the most downloaded on Apple’s platform and reached the top of the Google Play Store by January 27, 2025.

Liang has reportedly informed potential investors about ongoing efforts to develop open-source AI models, with the ambitious goal of achieving artificial general intelligence (AGI). This concept involves creating AI that can match or surpass human cognitive abilities.

In April 2025, a report from the Chinese Communist Party’s House of Representatives Select Committee labeled DeepSeek as a serious national security threat. The committee claimed that the app, while appearing to be a standard AI chatbot, collects data for the People’s Republic of China and poses security risks to users, while also censoring information according to Chinese law.