DeepSeek's valuation is nearly $45 billion, ushering in new development opportunities for domestic AI.

Author: MartinRecently, the first round of financing for DeepSeek, a leading AI company in China, has attracted significant market attention. According to foreign media citing sources, the National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund (National IC Fund) plans to lead this round of financing, potentially valuing DeepSeek at $45 billion post-investment, equivalent to approximately RMB 307.8 billion.This is its first external financing round in nearly three years since its founding, and its valuation has more than doubled from $20 billion in just a few weeks, demonstrating the capital market's high recognition of China's top-tier large-scale AI models.This round of financing is of landmark significance. The National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund (Big Fund), which has previously focused on investments in the semiconductor field, has now publicly announced its first foray into the domestic large-scale language model sector, sending a clear signal of the synergistic development of AI and the semiconductor industry and the construction of a closed loop for domestic technology. DeepSeek, with its high-performance and low-computing-power advantages, has become a benchmark enterprise for domestic large-scale models. With the support of the national-level industrial fund, its technological research and development and commercialization will receive stronger support. Looking to the future, artificial intelligence is becoming a core engine driving global economic growth, with broad development prospects. Technologically, AI is rapidly transitioning from dialogue tools to decision-making and execution, intelligent agent technology is continuously expanding application boundaries, the open-source ecosystem is thriving, and lightweight, cost-effective models are becoming the mainstream trend. In terms of the market, the global AI industry is steadily expanding, with the Chinese market showing strong growth momentum. It is estimated that the industry scale will exceed 10 trillion yuan by the end of the 15th Five-Year Plan period. As AI deeply penetrates various industries, with large-scale applications in manufacturing, healthcare, finance, and other fields, its industrial value continues to be released. DeepSeek's high valuation and the strategic layout of the National Integrated Circuit Industry Investment Fund are a microcosm of the rise of China's AI industry. Relying on a complete industrial chain and a vibrant technological innovation ecosystem, Chinese AI companies are accelerating breakthroughs in technological bottlenecks and occupying an important position in global competition. The future of China's AI industry is expected to usher in a new stage of high-quality development.