Deepseek nears $45 billion valuation as China's state chip fund leads round
Deepseek is close to a funding round that could value the Chinese AI lab at roughly $45 billion, according to the Financial Times. The talks are being led by the China Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund, with Tencent also negotiating a stake.
Article intelligence
Key points
- Deepseek's valuation could reach $45B in upcoming round
- China's state chip fund 'Big Fund' is leading the talks
- Tencent is also in negotiations for a stake
- Founder Liang Wenfeng may invest personally
Why it matters
This matters because deepseek's valuation could reach $45B in upcoming round.
Technical impact
May affect model selection, inference cost, product capability, and evaluation benchmarks.
Deepseek nears $45 billion valuation as China's state chip fund leads round
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Deepseek nears $45 billion valuation as China's state chip fund leads round
Maximilian Schreiner
View the LinkedIn Profile of Maximilian Schreiner
May 6, 2026
Deepseek is close to a funding round that could value the Chinese AI lab at roughly $45 billion, according to the Financial Times. The talks are being led by the China Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund, known as the "Big Fund," which has primarily backed semiconductor companies like SMIC and Yangtze Memory until now. Tech giant Tencent is also negotiating a stake, according to four people familiar with the discussions.
The valuation has climbed from $20 billion in just a matter of weeks. Founder Liang Wenfeng, who holds 89.5 percent of Deepseek, may also invest personally. Liang originally intended to raise only a small amount to establish a valuation for employee stock options and prevent competitors from poaching staff.
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Source: FT
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