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DeepSeek Raises $7.4B in First Outside Round at $50B-Plus Valuation

June 16, 2026 at 12:44 EDT

Funding & M&A
Foundation Models

Chinese AI lab DeepSeek has raised more than 5 billion yuan (around $7.4 billion) in its first external funding round, valuing the company at over $50 billion. The deal stands out for an unusual structure that preserves the founder's control.

DeepSeek · First External Funding

DeepSeek raises ~$740M at a $50B+ valuation — without giving up founder control

The Chinese AI startup closed its first outside round through an unusual limited-partnership structure run by founder Liang Wenfeng — letting in capital while voting rights stay almost entirely in his hands.

$740M

raised (over 5B yuan)

$50B+

valuation

~40%

put in by Liang himself (~$280M)

5 yr

investor lock-up

Who put in what

Reported contributions, in 100M-yuan blocks (each block = 100M yuan).

2.0B

Liang Wenfeng

1.0B

Tencent

0.5B

CATL

0.3B

NetEase

0.3B

IDG Capital

Values in yuan. JD also participated in the round.

The unusual part: capital in, control kept

Structure

Investors enter via an LP managed by founder Liang Wenfeng.

Voting

Only China's national AI fund gets direct voting rights — all others, none.

Investor terms

5-year lock-up, financial-info access, and priority in future rounds.

Supportive view

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