DeepSeek raises $15 billion at $74 billion valuation, sources say

CATL, Tencent, Monolith and Shixiang invest, with new backers Stony Creek Capital and Legend Capital, sources say

DeepSeek has raised $15 billion in a new financing round that values the company at $74 billion before the money comes in, according to people familiar with the deal. CATL, Tencent, Monolith and Shixiang took part, along with two new backers, Stony Creek Capital and Legend Capital, the people said.

The round marks a sharp jump from DeepSeek's last disclosed raise. In May 2026 the company closed a Series A round of $7 billion at a post-money valuation of $52 billion, according to Wikipedia, which cites Reuters.

DeepSeek makes AI models and earns most of its revenue by charging businesses and developers for access to them through an API, China Daily reported. Its annualised revenue run rate had reached $1 billion as of a report on September 24, more than double its level a few months earlier, China Daily said, citing The Information.

The new round comes days after the Trump administration barred DeepSeek from federal civilian agency IT systems, blocking those agencies from running DeepSeek software or buying products built on it. It also follows reports in July 2026 from Bloomberg and the Financial Times, cited by Wikipedia, that DeepSeek had begun preparing for a public listing as soon as 2027.

The size of the raise points to a widening base of private money behind DeepSeek even as Washington moves to restrict its reach inside the US government. CATL, Tencent and the two new investors are betting commercially on the company at the same time Chinese regulators have previously examined its data practices and Beijing's ministries have pushed back publicly against the American restrictions. For investors, that divergence is the story: security-driven curbs in one market are coexisting with growing financial commitment in another, and DeepSeek's expanding funding base suggests the Chinese and allied money behind it is not pulling back.