DeepSeek has more than doubled its annual revenue, reaching $1 billion ahead of its initial public offering (IPO). This was reported in a statement released on September 23, citing unnamed sources, according to The Information. DeepSeek's CEO, Lian Wenfeng, informed investors that demand for the company's products has not been affected by the price increases that occurred last month. In September, DeepSeek raised prices for its models by a range of 2.3 to 4.5 times, yet the prices remain among the lowest for major AI models.
The price increases came as the company prepares to complete its second round of funding, in which it plans to raise 50 billion yuan (approximately $7.5 billion) with a valuation of 500 billion yuan (around $75 billion), as also confirmed by the report. Earlier, on August 26, The Information reported that DeepSeek's revenue increased approximately tenfold since 2025. In the first seven months of 2025, the company earned about 475 million yuan (approximately $70.7 million), which is ten times its total revenue for 2024.
DeepSeek gained attention in early 2025 by releasing an AI model that surprised Silicon Valley and Wall Street, delivering performance comparable to American competitors while using significantly fewer Nvidia chips. In August, Bloomberg reported that DeepSeek is introducing a new so-called peak price for its V4 models, which is four times higher than existing levels. In June, the Financial Times noted that rising costs for AI have opened opportunities for Chinese AI labs, which can offer lower prices than American companies due to their more efficient operations and lower energy costs in China.
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