China AI startup Moonshot AI hits US$20 bln valuation after Meituan-led financing round

Chinese artificial intelligence startup Moonshot AI, known for its model Kimi, is on the verge of closing a US$2 billion (HK$15.7 billion) funding round led by Meituan (3690), with its valuation topping US$20 billion, mainland media reported.

The financing round is led by a US$200 million investment from Long-Z Investments, the venture capital arm of Meituan, while an investment firm of China Mobile (0941) and CPE - previously known as CITIC Private Equity have also participated in the funding.

After the update of its model Kimi K2.5, the upstart's annual recurring revenue has grown from exceeding US$100 million as of the start of March to more than US$200 million in April, the report said, citing the increase in paid subscriber base and API usage volume.

In 2026, Moonshot AI has completed three rounds of funding, raising a total of over US$3.9 billion upon this deal's completion.

The massive investment has driven its valuation to surge from US$4.3 billion in November last year to over US$20 billion (HK$156.7 billion). Its rivals, Zhipu AI (2513) and MiniMax (0100), are currently valued at HK$424.6 billion and HK$252.4 billion, respectively.

Previously, the AI model firm was reportedly considering an initial public offering in Hong Kong and had discussed the listing with China International Capital Corporation (3908) and Goldman Sachs.

 

𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗔𝗽𝗽 ↓