Hubei and Beijing Government Funds Collaborate to Support Zhipu AI

Investment in Zhipu AI by Beijing and Shenzhen

Funds controlled by the municipal governments of Beijing and Shenzhen have acquired stakes in Zhipu AI, one of the country’s so-called artificial intelligence (AI) “tigers”, providing more resources for the start-up to compete with US peers like ChatGPT creator OpenAI.

On November 1, the Beijing Artificial Intelligence Industry Investment Fund – which previously invested an undisclosed amount in the start-up in March – injected 465,090 yuan (US$65,288) in fresh capital to gain a 1.49 per cent stake in Zhipu AI, according to records on Chinese corporate database Qichacha.

Zhipu AI also received investments from funds controlled by the local governments of southern tech hub Shenzhen and central Hubei province, boosting the firm’s registered capital to about 31.07 million yuan from 27.91 million yuan, as per Qichacha data.

Zhipu AI’s latest funding reflects how Chinese AI-related enterprises continue to attract new investment, despite Washington’s moves to impede Beijing’s technological advancements.

Major Backers of Zhipu AI

Major investors in Zhipu AI include Alibaba Group Holding, Tencent Holdings, Meituan, GL Ventures, and Legend Capital. The Beijing government-controlled fund, which started in December last year with 10 billion yuan in registered capital, has made several strategic investments, including in AI start-ups.

This funding follows a significant round in September, where Zhipu AI was valued at approximately 20 billion yuan.

As a prominent player among China's new-generation tech unicorns, Zhipu AI, alongside competitors like Moonshot AI, aims to drive AI innovation and challenge industry leaders like OpenAI.