DeepSeek triggered a wild, baseless rally for some Chinese stocks | TechCrunch
Jan 28, 2025 - techcrunch.com
Chinese AI company DeepSeek recently made headlines for allegedly causing a significant sell-off in U.S. tech stocks, with Nvidia experiencing a nearly 20% drop. In China, rumors about DeepSeek's connections with certain public companies led to a surge in their stock prices, despite a lack of evidence supporting these claims. Companies like Huajin Capital and Zhejiang Orient saw their shares rise by 10%, while Sublime China Information's stock jumped 20% due to supposed collaborations with DeepSeek. However, Sublime China Information and Huajin Capital have denied any association with DeepSeek, and there is no public evidence linking Zhejiang Orient to the company. The rumors appear to have originated from unverified lists circulating in China.
DeepSeek, a private company founded by Liang Wenfeng, has not publicly announced any venture capital investments, and Chinese corporate records do not list any VC firms on its cap table. The company is funded by the quant firm High-Flyer, where Wenfeng serves as CEO, and has no plans to seek additional funding. Wenfeng mentioned in a 2023 interview that venture capitalists were hesitant to invest in a research-focused company like DeepSeek, preferring to prioritize commercialization. DeepSeek did not respond to requests for comments from TechCrunch regarding these developments.
Key takeaways:
Chinese AI company DeepSeek caused a significant sell-off in U.S. tech stocks, with Nvidia dropping nearly 20%.
Shares of Chinese companies rumored to be linked to DeepSeek surged, despite no evidence of actual ties.
DeepSeek has not publicly announced any VC investments, and its founder is the beneficial owner of all its entities.
DeepSeek is funded by the quant firm High-Flyer and has no plans to seek additional funding.
