DeepSeek plans to raise $1.8 billion, with a valuation of approximately $20 billion

According to Caijing magazine, the AI large model company DeepSeek is in talks with Tencent and Alibaba for financing, with the two investors expected to invest a total of $1.8 billion, valuing this round of financing at approximately $20 billion. The transaction plan has not yet been finalized, and DeepSeek, Tencent, and Alibaba have not publicly confirmed it.

Sources in the transaction revealed that the main reason for DeepSeek's open financing is the recent serious talent loss. Several core researchers have left one after another to join ByteDance, Tencent, Xiaomi, and the autonomous driving company Yuanrong Qihang. Meanwhile, competitors Zhiyu Technology and MiniMax have listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, and the Dark Side of the Moon has completed three rounds of financing in the first three months of this year, with a valuation more than quadrupling since the end of last year.

Tencent and Alibaba's investment in DeepSeek will help diversify risks in the AI sector and deepen cooperation between the two parties at the model and product levels.