On a day in late October, a report surfaced that a Chinese artificial intelligence company called DeepSeek had gathered roughly 100 billion yuan, about fifteen billion dollars, in its latest round of funding. The account rests on people familiar with the matter who remain unnamed, and it places two very different enterprises at the top of the investor list: the internet giant behind WeChat and a battery maker that has become a pioneer of its industry. For now the sum is a claim still waiting for its confirmation, a sign of how large the stakes of the new technological age have grown.
DeepSeek Reportedly Raises About $15 Billion, With Tencent and CATL Among Top Investors
A single outlet's account of a very large round
Mark
So what exactly is being reported here?
Mimi
Bloomberg says DeepSeek raised about 100 billion yuan, roughly $14.98 billion, in its latest round. Tencent and CATL are named among the largest investors.
Luke
And that's all attributed to unnamed people familiar with the matter. Nobody on the record.
Mark
Has anyone confirmed it?
Mimi
Not in what we have. Reuters said it couldn't immediately verify Bloomberg's report independently.
Luke
Which means this is one outlet's sourcing, repeated by others. It's plausible reporting, but it isn't confirmed.
Mark
Why does it matter that the investors include a battery maker and a platform company?
Mimi
It shows the range of who is named. Tencent runs WeChat, CATL is a battery pioneer. That's what the report says, and it stops there.
Luke
Careful, though. We don't know how much either put in or what stake they hold. 'Among the largest' is all we've got.
Mark
And the dollar figure?
Mimi
It's a conversion at 6.6749 yuan to the dollar. The yuan number is the primary one.
Luke
Also unknown: valuation, closing date, and what the money is for. Those would tell us a lot more than the headline number.
Der Puls
- A single report claims DeepSeek raised about 100 billion yuan, roughly $14.98 billion, and the figure has not yet been independently confirmed.
- Reuters could not immediately verify Bloomberg's sourcing, leaving the amount and the investor list hanging on unnamed voices.
- Tencent and CATL are named among the largest backers, an unlikely pairing of an internet platform and a battery manufacturer.
- Neither DeepSeek nor its investors have spoken, and the valuation, individual stakes, and plans for the money remain unknown.
On a day in late October, a report surfaced that a Chinese artificial intelligence company called DeepSeek had gathered roughly 100 billion yuan, about fifteen billion dollars, in its latest round of funding. The account rests on people familiar with the matter who remain unnamed, and it places two very different enterprises at the top of the investor list: the internet giant behind WeChat and a battery maker that has become a pioneer of its industry. For now the sum is a claim still waiting for its confirmation, a sign of how large the stakes of the new technological age have grown.
On October 22, Bloomberg News reported that DeepSeek, a Chinese AI company, raised about 100 billion yuan, or roughly $14.98 billion, in its latest funding round. The figure comes from people familiar with the deal, whom Bloomberg did not name. Channel NewsAsia carried the story, and UA.News picked it up from there.
The report names Tencent Holdings, operator of WeChat, and Contemporary Amperex Technology, known as CATL, among the largest backers. The pairing is striking: one is an internet platform, the other a major battery maker. Beyond naming them, the reporting offers no detail on how much either invested, what stakes they hold, or how the rest of the money was split.
Reuters said it could not independently verify the report, so the amount and the investor list rest on Bloomberg's sources alone. DeepSeek, Tencent, and CATL are not quoted, so there is no confirmation or denial from anyone involved. The dollar figure is a conversion at 6.6749 yuan to the dollar and will shift with exchange rates.
Missing from the account are a valuation, a closing date, and any word on what the company intends to do with the money. Confirmation from DeepSeek or its investors, or further reporting on stakes and valuation, would settle the question. Until then, this is one outlet's account of a very large round.
On October 22, Bloomberg News published a report that put a very large number on a Chinese AI company: about 100 billion yuan, or $14.98 billion, raised by DeepSeek in its latest funding round. The figure comes from people familiar with the matter, whom Bloomberg did not name. Channel NewsAsia carried the report, and UA.News picked it up from there.
The report names two of the largest investors in the round. One is Tencent Holdings, the company that operates WeChat. The other is Contemporary Amperex Technology, known as CATL, which Reuters describes as a pioneer in battery manufacturing. According to Bloomberg, both were among the biggest backers of the round.
The pairing is worth noticing for who it includes. One investor is an internet platform company and the other is a battery maker. Beyond naming them as large participants, the reporting does not say how much either put in, what stake each now holds, or how the rest of the money was divided.
There is also a caveat attached to the story itself. Reuters said it could not immediately verify Bloomberg's report on its own. So the amount raised and the identity of the leading investors rest on Bloomberg's sources alone. DeepSeek is not quoted in the material, and neither are Tencent or CATL, so there is no confirmation or denial from the companies involved.
The dollar figure is a conversion. The reporting used an exchange rate of 6.6749 yuan to the U.S. dollar, and at that rate 100 billion yuan comes to roughly $14.98 billion. The yuan amount is the more direct figure, and the dollar number will shift with the exchange rate.
What the reporting leaves out is as notable as what it includes. It gives no valuation for DeepSeek, no breakdown of individual investments, and no closing date for the round. It does not say what the company plans to do with the money.
What would settle the matter is confirmation from DeepSeek or from the named investors, or further reporting that fills in the stakes and the valuation. Until then, this is a single outlet's account of a very large round, with Tencent and CATL named at the top of the investor list.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
Reuters said it was unable to immediately independently verify Bloomberg's report on DeepSeek's funding.— Reuters, as relayed by Channel NewsAsia
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