DeepSeek, an emerging Chinese AI model developer, is preparing to file for an IPO on the mainland China's stock exchange. It is expected to file as early as the end of 2026 and could become a highly watched IPO in China's technology history.
According to Bloomberg, DeepSeek is preparing to file for an initial public offering (IPO) on the Chinese stock market, aiming to submit the filing as early as this year to start trading in 2027.
The company is consulting with accounting and financial institutions to plan its market entry. However, it has not officially disclosed any information yet, and details are expected to change in the future.
Bloomberg also reports that DeepSeek is preparing to raise another round of funding before the IPO, even though it recently secured over $7 billion in funding just a few weeks ago.
The new fundraising round before the IPO aims for a pre-money valuation of at least 480 billion yuan, or about $71 billion.
This pre-money valuation is an increase from approximately $50 billion during its first external funding round closing in early June, which included major investors such as Tencent Holdings and Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL).
For this new round, DeepSeek targets raising at least 10 billion yuan, or nearly $1.5 billion, though the final amount could be several times higher if investor interest exceeds expectations. Sources note that both the IPO and fundraising plans are still under discussion, and details may change depending on market conditions and company performance.
Currently, DeepSeek is working with accounting firms to complete its financial statements by the end of December, a critical step before filing. If the financials are finalized on schedule, the company aims to file by late this year, but delays could push the filing to early 2027.
DeepSeek has become one of the most closely watched startups globally, as a key player in China’s AI competition with the West.
Last year, the company made waves in the AI field by launching a new model demonstrating that China can develop cutting-edge technology despite using far fewer computing resources than competitors.
That success led many to believe Chinese firms can compete with Silicon Valley's top tech companies despite facing export controls on advanced chips and hardware imposed by the U.S.
Currently, DeepSeek requires additional funding to support major business expansion plans, especially to increase processing power for AI development.
Founded in 2023, DeepSeek’s major shareholder is Zhejiang High-Flyer Asset Management, a Chinese hedge fund also established by Liang Wenfeng.
Liang Wenfeng, the founder of DeepSeek, recently reaffirmed his commitment to investors that the company will continue developing open-source AI models and pursue the long-term goal of Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), AI with human-like capabilities.
This approach reflects DeepSeek’s focus on advancing AI capabilities and innovation rather than short-term revenue generation.
Additionally, the latest funding round has more than doubled Liang Wenfeng’s net worth. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, he now has an estimated net worth of $36 billion, up from about $16.7 billion previously.
This makes Liang Wenfeng the richest AI model developer worldwide, surpassing Dario Amodei, co-founder of Anthropic, and Greg Brockman, co-founder of OpenAI.
Recently, DeepSeek expanded into Agentic AI development following the launch of OpenClaw, sparking interest in AI technology that can operate independently with minimal human instruction.
Source:Bloomberg
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