DeepSeek Reportedly Nears $12bn Funding Round Backed by Tencent and CATL
October 6, 2026 - 8:29 am
Credit: JarTee / Shutterstock
DeepSeek (deepseek on this site) is close to raising at least 80 billion yuan, or about $12bn, in a new funding round, according to Bloomberg News. Tencent and the battery maker CATL have committed significant sums.
The Chinese AI lab initially aimed for a 50 billion yuan raise but demand grew post the launch of its latest model, potentially reaching 100 billion yuan.
DeepSeek has not publicly announced the funding round. This would surpass its first outside funding round earlier this year, which raised 50 billion yuan at a valuation of $52bn to $59bn.
Founder Liang Wenfeng led the initial round with about 20 billion yuan of his own money. Tencent contributed roughly 10 billion yuan, CATL around 5 billion yuan, alongside JD.com, NetEase, and China’s national AI investment fund.
Tencent, known for its WeChat messaging app and cloud business, and CATL, a leading electric car battery manufacturer now spearhead the new round.
CATL also works on solid-state batteries. For Tencent, this partnership could help them stay competitive with domestic rivals. Reuters reported this possibility in June.
Last month, Reuters mentioned that DeepSeek had engaged CITIC Securities to prepare for a possible IPO on Shanghai’s STAR Market, dedicated to tech companies. However, details regarding timing, valuation, and scale remain undetermined.
DeepSeek originated from High-Flyer, a quantitative hedge fund founded by Liang. The lab gained attention in early 2025 due to its R1 open-source model and launched V4 models this year.
By Cristian Dina
CRO at The Next Web
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Cristian Dina is the CRO at The Next Web. He has interviewed 300+ industry leaders and authored the book "King of Networking", establishing himself as one of the most connected voices in tech. At 23, Cristian was featured on Forbes' 2025 30 Under 30 list.
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