DeepSeek this week began preliminary talks with new investors about opening a fresh round of fundraising just one month after it closed its first-ever external funding round, and is seeking a valuation of about $71 billion (£53bn) before the new money, according to multiple reports.

The Hangzhou-based start-up, known for bringing mainland China-based AI into the spotlight in early 2025, is believed to have raised about $7bn at a post-funding valuation of about $52bn at the end of May, according to earlier reports citing people familiar with the matter.

While details of the new round have not yet been finalised, the $71bn valuation would represent a 37 percent jump over the previous figure.

The unusual pace of fundraising stems from expectations of increased capital expenditure as DeepSeek looks to build its own data centre and purchase more AI chips, the Financial Times reported.

The company is reportedly seeing more demand for computing power as it moves into building AI agents that can carry out tasks on behalf of users.

Separately, Reuters reported that a regulatory filing by luggage maker Anhui Korrun appeared to publicly confirm that DeepSeek’s initial round valued it at 350.88bn yuan ($51.8bn, £38.5bn).

Anhui Korrun said in a Thursday filing that a fund it invested in obtained an indirect 0.8265 percent stake in DeepSeek for 2.9bn yuan, implying the valuation, Reuters reported.

DeepSeek, a private company, has never disclosed details of its funding activities, meaning that the filing is a rare public confirmation of the figures involved.

The start-up previously relied on its parent hedge fund, High-Flyer, for capital, but began external fundraising in order to help retain staff and to fund broader capital expenditures, according to local media reports.

Reuters also reported that DeepSeek was considering an external funding round of up to 50bn yuan at a valuation of roughly 500bn yuan.

It reported that DeepSeek has begun preparations for a listing on Shanghai’s STAR Market exchange and is aiming to file IPO paperwork this year.

Beijing-based Moonshot AI is raising a new round of funds that would value it at about $31.5bn, the FT reported this week.