DeepSeek moves to lead seed round for robotics AI startup Winverse

DeepSeek moves toward Winverse seed role

DeepSeek is moving to lead a seed financing round for Winverse AI, a stealth Chinese startup building artificial intelligence for robots, according to Bloomberg. The deal would value Winverse at roughly $400 million after the investment closes, Bloomberg said, citing unnamed sources. The round would draw on capital from DeepSeek's own fundraising, which is close to securing more than $12 billion. Other investors including Meituan's Long-Z Investments have also committed to the round. The deal remains subject to change, with both the valuation and the roster of participating investors still unsettled.

Founder background and robotics stakes

Hu Han, who previously led Tencent Holdings' vision-language and embodied foundation model teams as a scientist, established Winverse in 2026. Hu holds a PhD from Tsinghua University and has worked at Microsoft Research Asia and Baidu, according to Bloomberg. His departure from Tencent came as the company restructured its AI research operations. The investment would extend DeepSeek's presence in robotics beyond financial stakes. The lab took a 2.31% strategic stake in humanoid robot maker Unitree Robotics ahead of Unitree's Shanghai listing in August, committing to a 36-month lock-up period, triple the hold period most other strategic investors accepted. Analysts described that position as a strategic partnership rather than a return-seeking investment.

Funding context for robot AI

China has built a strong manufacturing base for humanoid robot hardware, but developing the AI models that allow robots to interpret speech and perform complex real-world tasks remains a separate and less developed field, according to Bloomberg. U.S. startups Skild AI and Physical Intelligence, which develop general-purpose AI for robots, are valued at $14 billion and $5.6 billion respectively and have attracted backing from Nvidia and Alphabet, Bloomberg said. DeepSeek is close to raising at least 80 billion yuan, or roughly $12 billion, in its latest funding round, ahead of a planned market debut in early 2027. That capital was primarily earmarked for model training and data centers, but may also support investments in startups for joint development. Hu Han did not respond to a request for comment. Representatives for DeepSeek and Long-Z also did not respond, according to Bloomberg.

Sources: Quartz Via Yahoo Finance · Dealroom