DeepSeek is seeking its first outside funding round at a valuation of at least $10 billion, according to a report by The Information. The Chinese AI startup is aiming to raise at least $300 million as it looks to step up competition in the race to build advanced AI models.

The company has so far been funded entirely by its parent, Chinese hedge fund High Flyer Capital Management, which backed DeepSeek as it developed its models. That could now be changing as DeepSeek reportedly begins discussions with external investors after previously rejecting funding offers from some of China’s biggest venture capital firms and technology companies.

DeepSeek’s reported $10 billion target would still place it well below the top tier of the AI market. OpenAI said in February that it was raising $110 billion in a funding round valuing the company at about $840 billion, with that figure later rising to roughly $852 billion in early April.

Anthropic, meanwhile, raised funding in February at a $380 billion valuation, with some venture investors this week reportedly floating offers that would value the Claude maker at as much as $800 billion.

DeepSeek drew wide attention after its R1 model gained traction across both Silicon Valley and Wall Street last year. The reported fundraising push suggests the company now wants a larger capital base to keep pace in an increasingly expensive AI race.