Funding for China’s artificial-intelligence-related start-ups jumped nearly threefold year on year in the first quarter, as investors poured capital into large language models (LLMs) and embodied AI amid growing optimism over the country’s technology ecosystem. AI-related start-ups secured more than 110 billion yuan (US$16.2 billion) in the first three months of the year, representing a 185 per cent surge from the same period last year, according to data released on Thursday by Beijing-based venture capital and private equity research firm Zero2IPO Research. The AI boom has helped lift China’s broader private equity and venture capital market. Total investment activity reached 2,568 deals worth 234.4 billion yuan in the March quarter, representing year-on-year increases of nearly 5 per cent in deal volume and over 15 per cent in value, the report showed.

Full Zero2IPO research: Chinese AI startups raised $16.2 billion in Q1 2026, up 185% YoY, led by top AI labs including Moonshot, Z.ai, and MiniMax.