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TL;DR
Several outlets report that DeepSeek raised about 100 billion yuan, or roughly $15 billion, in a second funding round, with The Information putting the total at 106 billion yuan. DeepSeek has not confirmed the financing, and reports differ on the amount and whether state-backed institutions led the round.
DeepSeek has reportedly closed a funding round worth about 100 billion yuan—roughly $15 billion—according to several news organizations, a major change for the Chinese AI company historically financed by its owner, hedge fund High-Flyer. The company has not confirmed the deal, and accounts differ on the final amount and the role of state-backed investors.
Bloomberg, Reuters and The Wall Street Journal reported on October 22 that the round was worth about 100 billion yuan. Reuters cited four people and described the financing as nearing completion at the time. On October 23, The Information reported that the round had closed at 106 billion yuan, citing three people. The outlets’ reports point to a financing roughly twice the amount DeepSeek had initially sought for the second round.
The reported valuation is about 500 billion yuan before the new investment, according to Reuters and the Journal. That is higher than the roughly 351 billion yuan post-money valuation implied by filings after DeepSeek’s June round, which reportedly raised more than 50 billion yuan, or about $7.4 billion. The figures and valuations have not been confirmed by DeepSeek.
CATL and Tencent are named among the largest investors in several accounts. Reuters also reported participation by Midea, Meituan, Geely, chipmaker GigaDevice, existing shareholders NetEase and IDG Capital, and investment firms Boyu Capital, CPE and Legend Capital. The Information’s account of state-backed institutions in the round has drawn attention, but claims that the state chip fund led with 27% state capital appear in newsletter summaries of its report and have not been independently verified by a second outlet.
Infographic 01 · Two rounds in six months
From self-funded to $74 billion.
DeepSeek took no outside money until 2026. Then came two rounds, a paused deal and a U.S. order, all in six months.
How the price moved
Reported valuations, U.S. dollars
The striped bar is my calculation (about 600 billion yuan), not a reported figure. Exchange rates vary between outlets.
Who owned DeepSeek after round 1
Share of registered capital, July 2026, as reported by Caixin
Registered capital is not the same as economic value. The October round is not yet in any reported filing.
- 22 Apr 2026Tencent and Alibaba in talks, valuation above $20 billionThe Information · first round, talks only
- 16 Jun 2026Round 1 closes: more than 50bn yuan ($7.4bn), “unusual deal structure”The Information · Liang 20bn, Tencent ~10bn, CATL 5bn yuan (Reuters, Caixin)
- 25 Jul 2026Round 2 paused after a purported investor transcript went viralBloomberg
- 6 Oct 2026Round may double to 100bn yuan; state-backed funds and companies “jostling”CNBC
- 20 Oct 2026U.S. order: DeepSeek products out of federal civilian ITDHS, Federal Register 2026-21447
- 22 Oct 2026About 100bn yuan raised · Reuters: “wrapping up”, “not ironclad”Bloomberg, Reuters, WSJ
- 23 Oct 2026Closed at 106bn yuan ($15.9bn), three people sayThe Information
- 30 Oct 2026Investor details: tech titans and “state-backed institutions”The Information
Sources: The Information, 22 Apr 2026; The Information, 16 Jun 2026; The Information, 23 Oct 2026; The Information, 30 Oct 2026; Reuters, 22 Oct 2026; Bloomberg, 22 Oct 2026; WSJ, 22 Oct 2026; CNBC, 6 Oct 2026; Caixin, 17 Jul 2026; DHS order, Federal Register, 20 Oct 2026. Arithmetic marked as mine.
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A Bigger Funding Base for DeepSeek
If the reports are accurate, the round would give DeepSeek a much larger pool of capital as it competes in a costly AI market. The financing could support investment in computing capacity, research and product development, although the company has not disclosed how it would use the money. The scale also marks a shift from DeepSeek’s earlier image as a lab whose development was financed principally by High-Flyer.
The reported involvement of major technology companies and potentially state-linked funds matters because it could broaden the company’s financial and institutional ties. But the investor picture is not settled: the reported amount is not confirmed, and accounts differ over who led and how much state-backed capital participated. Those distinctions matter to anyone interpreting the deal as evidence of government influence or a change in DeepSeek’s control.
For customers, a funding report does not by itself change the terms of using DeepSeek’s products. The source material says the company’s open model weights remain under a permissive MIT licence and can be run on a customer’s own servers, while its app and API store data in China. U.S. federal civilian agencies, meanwhile, have been ordered to remove DeepSeek products from their systems. The practical implications depend on whether an organization uses the downloadable models or DeepSeek’s hosted services.
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Two Rounds, Six Months Apart
DeepSeek is based in Hangzhou and was founded by Liang Wenfeng. The Information describes the company as owned by High-Flyer. In June 2026, DeepSeek reportedly completed its first outside funding round, raising more than 50 billion yuan at a valuation above 50 billion U.S. dollars. A stock-exchange filing discussed by Caixin later implied a post-money valuation of more than 350 billion yuan. Those reports provide the reference point for the much larger second-round valuation.
Some headlines about Tencent and Alibaba refer to an earlier, separate report. On April 22, The Information said the companies were in talks to invest at a valuation above $20 billion, before DeepSeek’s first reported outside round. The supplied reporting says Alibaba does not appear in the reported investor lists for either completed round. In July, reports also described Liang as holding about 91% of registered capital, directly or through a partnership he controls, after changes around the first round. No registry change for the October financing had been reported in the source material as of October 30.
The second round’s reported size grew over time. CNBC reported on October 6 that it could double to 100 billion yuan, with state-backed funds and corporate investors seeking stakes. Bloomberg, Reuters and the Journal reported the approximate 100 billion yuan figure on October 22; The Information subsequently put the closed total at 106 billion yuan. DeepSeek’s past funding and ownership details have come from reporting and filings rather than a public company announcement of this round.
The Round’s Terms Still Need Confirmation
DeepSeek has not publicly confirmed the financing, its final size, its valuation or the identities and stakes of investors. The reported amount ranges from about 100 billion yuan to 106 billion yuan. The dollar equivalents vary with conversion and reporting, so the yuan figures are the more direct basis for comparing accounts.
Reports also disagree or provide incomplete detail about leadership of the round. CATL and Tencent are repeatedly named among major investors. A claim that the state chip fund led the financing and that state capital accounted for 27% has not been verified by a second outlet in the supplied material. Earlier registry information showed a state-linked fund with about 0.28% of DeepSeek after the June round, but that does not establish the ownership structure after the reported October financing.
The reported valuation, investor commitments and revenue figure also remain unverified by company disclosures. The $1 billion annualized revenue pace was attributed to Liang’s statement to investors, not audited accounts. It is not yet clear whether DeepSeek will publish terms, updated ownership records or details on how the funding will be spent.
Watch for Filings and Company Comment
The next clear evidence may come from a DeepSeek statement, investor disclosures or updated company registry records. Those could help establish whether the round closed at 100 billion yuan or 106 billion yuan, which investors took part, and whether ownership changed. Until then, the reported figures should be treated as accounts attributed to news organizations and their sources, not as terms confirmed by DeepSeek.
Companies using DeepSeek should separately review which product they rely on. Running open model weights on their own infrastructure is different from sending data to the company’s app or API, which the source material says store data in China. U.S. federal civilian agencies are subject to the October 20 removal order. The financing itself does not announce a product or policy change, and no immediate change to the app was reported.
Key Questions
Has DeepSeek confirmed the reported $16 billion raise?
No. DeepSeek has not publicly confirmed the round in the supplied reporting. Multiple outlets reported a roughly 100 billion yuan financing, while The Information reported a closed total of 106 billion yuan.
How much did DeepSeek reportedly raise?
Bloomberg, Reuters and The Wall Street Journal reported about 100 billion yuan. The Information reported 106 billion yuan. The source material gives dollar estimates of roughly $15 billion to $15.9 billion, depending on the reported amount and conversion.
Who reportedly invested?
Several reports name CATL and Tencent among the largest investors. Reuters also listed Midea, Meituan, Geely, GigaDevice, NetEase, IDG Capital, Boyu Capital, CPE and Legend Capital. DeepSeek has not confirmed the investor list, and the reported state-backed participation remains disputed or unverified.
Does the reported financing change how customers can use DeepSeek?
No product change was reported alongside the financing. The source material says DeepSeek’s open model weights remain under an MIT licence and can be run on local servers, while its app and API store data in China. Customers should distinguish between self-hosted models and DeepSeek-hosted services.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
