Market & RegulationInvestment · $15B
DeepSeek raises $15B despite US restrictions
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Why it matters
- →DeepSeek raises $15B despite US federal bans, showing strong domestic capital support.
- →Investors like Tencent and CATL back Chinese AI amid geopolitical tensions.
- →Funding fuels infrastructure expansion and open model development for global markets.
Chinese AI lab DeepSeek has reportedly raised approximately $15 billion (100 billion yuan) in its latest funding round, according to Bloomberg. The investment comes just two days after the U.S. government ordered federal civilian agencies to remove DeepSeek’s technology due to security concerns. Potential investors include major entities such as Tencent and battery manufacturer CATL. This follows a $7 billion raise in June at a $50 billion valuation, with plans for a potential IPO in China next year.
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Earlier coverage that leads up to this article, and what followed. Lines connect each piece to the closest one after it, converging here.
How we got here
- 1AI Drives Asia's Startup Funding to Record High
Crunchbase News · July 16, 2026 · Related
- 2Former DeepMind Researcher Raises $55M for Visual AI Startup
TechCrunch AI · July 16, 2026 · Background
- 3DeepSeek Leads AI Labs on Unicorn Board
Crunchbase News · July 22, 2026 · Related
- 4Alibaba and DeepSeek advance China's AI model race
AI News · August 5, 2026 · Related
- 5DeepSeek Releases V4.1 Flash Model
Lev Selector · September 11, 2026 · Background
- 6DeepMind spinoff nears $4bn valuation
Sifted · September 17, 2026 · Background
- 7DeepSeek Hits $1B Annual Run Rate
Lev Selector · October 2, 2026 · Related
- 8Meta creates new share class for AI funding
The Verge AI · October 21, 2026 · Background
What happened next
- 9Disruptive raises $10B fund for AI and defense bets
TechCrunch AI · October 27, 2026 · Background
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