Moonshot AI eyes Hong Kong IPO after $50 billion valuation
Usagevpn.com – Moonshot AI eyes Hong Kong IPO plans following a private funding round that valued the Beijing-based start-up at about $50 billion (€44.6bn). The company, known for its Kimi chatbot, is considering a public listing in the city as Chinese artificial intelligence developers seek fresh capital for expansion.
The valuation is up from $31.5 billion (€28.1bn) in a funding round earlier this summer. Moonshot could list in Hong Kong during the first quarter of 2027 and potentially raise up to $5 billion (€4.46bn), although the timing and size of any offering remain subject to change.
Bank of America is coordinating the prospective listing. China International Capital Corp, Deutsche Bank and Goldman Sachs are acting as sponsors, while early investor meetings could begin as soon as this month.
Revenue growth strengthens Moonshot’s case
Moonshot’s annual recurring revenue rose from $300 million (€268mn) in June to around $1 billion (€892mn). The company expects the figure to reach $2 billion (€1.78bn) by December, giving investors a clearer measure of its commercial progress.
Founded in early 2023 by Tsinghua University graduate Yang Zhilin, who previously worked at Meta AI and Google Brain, Moonshot has backing from Alibaba and Tencent. Its Kimi K3 open model, released in July, helped bring further international attention to the company.
If the deal proceeds, Moonshot AI eyes Hong Kong as a route already taken by other Chinese AI developers. Zhipu and MiniMax both listed in January, with MiniMax shares more than doubling on their first day of trading.
DeepSeek fundraising could surpass its original target
Meanwhile, Hangzhou-based DeepSeek is close to raising at least 80 billion yuan (€10.6bn), with Tencent and battery manufacturer CATL among the largest investors. Investor demand could lift the total to as much as 100 billion yuan (€13.3bn), above its initial target of about 50 billion yuan (€6.66bn).
DeepSeek sought a valuation near 500 billion yuan (€66.5bn) for the financing. Until this year, it was funded mainly through High-Flyer, the hedge fund founded by DeepSeek founder Liang Wenfeng. The wider fundraising effort underlines the growing costs of model training, computing capacity and commercial expansion.
Competition over models and AI chips
DeepSeek drew global market attention in January 2025 after its lower-cost R1 model prompted investors to reassess the cost of developing advanced AI. Nvidia lost almost $600 billion (€535bn) in market value in a single day.
The company has since released V4 models and a faster V4.1-Flash version in September. It has also partnered with Huawei on programming tools for Ascend AI chips, as Beijing seeks to reduce reliance on Nvidia hardware.
Both DeepSeek and Moonshot face scrutiny from the Cyberspace Administration of China. Reports last month said the regulator was examining whether sensitive user data had been routed to Claude, the chatbot created by US company Anthropic. Anthropic has accused both companies of using its model to train their own systems, and it remains unclear whether the investigation will affect fundraising or listing plans.
FAQ: Moonshot AI and Hong Kong investors
When could Moonshot AI list in Hong Kong?
A possible Hong Kong IPO could take place in the first quarter of 2027, but the timetable has not been finalised and may change.
How much could the Moonshot IPO raise?
The potential offering could raise up to $5 billion (€4.46bn), based on current expectations.
Why does Moonshot AI eyes Hong Kong for its potential IPO?
Hong Kong provides access to public-market investors and has become an important listing venue for Chinese technology and AI companies seeking growth capital.
