DeepSeek stopped its second round of fundraising just weeks after completing the first.
The company had aimed to raise at least 10 billion yuan with a pre-money valuation of 480 billion yuan, significantly higher than the roughly $50 billion valuation of its earlier financing round.
The pause came after private comments by DeepSeek’s founder, Liang Wenfeng, surfaced online and spread widely on social media.
Liang reportedly criticized information leaks from a prior investor meeting, sparking concerns among participants and the public, according to Bloomberg.
The initial round, which closed in June, brought in $7 billion and attracted heavyweight investors like Tencent Holdings and Contemporary Amperex Technology.
Following this, DeepSeek quickly opened talks for the follow-up funding. However, just days before some deals were set to be signed, the company informed some investors that the timeline was put on hold.
It remains unclear if all prospective investors received the same update.
Chinese media outlet Yicai reported that Liang discussed China’s reliance on Nvidia hardware and compared its AI progress less favorably to the US, fueling further chatter around the company.
DeepSeek has not ruled out restarting the fundraising or adjusting the round’s size. An IPO filing is also reportedly in preparation for later this year.
The developments come at a time when AI startups are increasingly in the spotlight, following moves like Nvidia’s massive investments and industry calls to ramp up semiconductor production to keep pace with AI demand.
Material is for informational purposes only and not a financial recommendation.
