DeepSeek pauses funding discussions amid investor concerns

DeepSeek, the Chinese AI startup that sent shockwaves through global tech markets earlier this year, has informed prospective investors that it’s pausing discussions around additional funding. The move comes barely a month after the company closed its first-ever external financing round at a staggering $52 billion valuation. From record raise to radio silence In late May and early June 2026, DeepSeek raised approximately $7.4 billion, or about 50 billion yuan, in its debut external financing round. The deal valued the company at roughly $52 billion post-money, making it one of the largest AI funding events globally. The round attracted heavyweight backers. Tencent and CATL, China’s battery behemoth, both participated. But the biggest check came from an unusual source: DeepSeek’s own founder, Liang Wenfeng, who personally invested around $3 billion. That made him the single largest investor in his own company’s funding round. By mid-July, reports surfaced that preliminary talks for a second funding round were already underway. The target pre-money valuation was reportedly around $71 billion, a 37% jump from the first round’s valuation just weeks earlier. Now those conversations have...