Tencent, Alibaba Discuss DeepSeek Investment
Analysis based on 6 articles · First reported Apr 22, 2026 · Last updated Apr 23, 2026
The potential investment by Tencent and Alibaba Group in DeepSeek at a high valuation highlights the intense capital requirements and growing competition in the AI sector, potentially driving further investment and innovation. Alibaba Group's shares saw a slight increase in premarket trading, indicating positive investor sentiment towards its involvement in the AI space.
Chinese tech giants Tencent and Alibaba Group are reportedly in discussions to invest in the artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek. DeepSeek, owned by RA Capital Management, is aiming to raise funding at a valuation exceeding $20 billion, following strong initial interest from prospective investors. This potential fundraise underscores the significant capital needed to develop advanced AI models and agentic bots. The talks are ongoing, and both the valuation and the amount of capital to be raised could change. DeepSeek's previous actions include training a model on Nvidia's banned advanced chip and its initial release in January 2025, which triggered a global tech selloff and spurred rivals to upgrade their models. Some venture capitalists from United States may be hesitant to invest due to DeepSeek's Chinese origin.
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