Moonshot AI has raised nearly $2 billion in its latest funding round, highlighting the rising investor interest in Chinese artificial intelligence startups competing with Silicon Valley leaders such as OpenAI and Anthropic.
The venture investment arm of Meituan led the funding round, pushing Moonshot AI’s valuation to more than $20 billion, according to a statement released by financial advisor HF Capital, which advised several investors involved in the transaction. Additionally, the company reported that its annual recurring revenue crossed $200 million in April, driven primarily by subscriptions to its Kimi chatbot and AI model services.
A spokesperson for Moonshot AI did not respond to requests for comment. However, a representative from Meituan’s Long-Z Investments confirmed the firm’s participation in the round.
The latest investment demonstrates the rapid growth of Moonshot AI, which has increased its valuation more than fourfold within just a few months. Toward the end of last year, the Beijing-based startup raised $500 million at a valuation of $4.3 billion. Earlier this year, the company secured another $700 million at a $10 billion valuation. Subsequently, it was reported that the startup sought an additional $1 billion in funding through an expanded fundraising round.
Investors have increasingly directed capital toward a select group of Chinese AI startups that aim to compete globally in generative AI, large language models, AI chatbots, and enterprise AI services. Meanwhile, DeepSeek has reportedly begun raising external capital for the first time, attracting strong interest from state-backed investors at a potential valuation of up to $50 billion.
At the same time, Moonshot AI’s competitors, including MiniMax and Zhipu AI, have achieved valuations exceeding $30 billion following their strong market debuts in Hong Kong earlier this year. The developments reflect the accelerating momentum in China’s artificial intelligence ecosystem as companies race to develop globally competitive AI technologies.
Moonshot AI founder Yang Zhilin established the company after working at Meta Platforms and Google. The startup currently offers tiered subscription plans for its Kimi chatbot while also providing AI infrastructure and underlying model technology to enterprise customers.
As investor confidence in generative AI, enterprise AI solutions, and large language models continues to rise, Moonshot AI is rapidly emerging as a significant challenger to major Western AI companies in the global technology landscape.
