Zhipu Raises $140 Million in Funding Round
Chinese startup Zhipu has secured over 1 billion yuan (approximately $140 million) in a recent financing round, according to a statement. This significant investment, spearheaded by local government-backed entities, underscores the burgeoning interest in domestic artificial intelligence (AI) development, particularly following the rise of DeepSeek.
Participants in Zhipu’s latest funding round included Hangzhou Municipal Construction Investment Group Co. and Shangcheng Capital. Both firms are controlled by the Hangzhou government. It is worth noting that Hangzhou is also the home town of DeepSeek. Existing backers of Zhipu, such as Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. and Tencent Holdings Ltd., also participated in the round.
During a May 2024 funding round, Zhipu was last valued at about $3 billion. Further details regarding the recent financing, including specific investor contributions, were disclosed in a WeChat statement released by the company. The funding round represents continued confidence in the potential of Chinese AI.
