Moonshot AI, the developer of China’s popular Kimi chatbot, is seeking to raise between US$1 billion and US$2 billion in a new funding round that could value the company at as much as US$30 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter, as competition among the country’s leading artificial intelligence developers intensifies. The Beijing-based company was targeting a valuation roughly 50 per cent higher than the US$20 billion it achieved in its previous financing round, completed in May. HF Capital, the financial adviser for the May round, revealed that round’s valuation and transaction details in a since-deleted WeChat post. If completed at the targeted valuation, the new fundraising would mark a dramatic rise for one of China’s most closely watched AI start-ups and underscore investors’ growing appetite for domestic AI champions.

Full report : Beijing-based Moonshot, which makes the Kimi chatbot, is in talks to raise up to $2 billion at a $30 billion valuation, up from a $20 billion+ valuation in a May round.