Beijing-based startup Moonshot AI has closed a massive $3.5 billion Series F funding round, tripling its initial target to reach a $35 billion post-money valuation. Backed by China's state-run National AI Industry Investment Fund, the round was propelled by the release of Moonshot's Kimi K3, a 2.8-trillion-parameter open-weight model that rivals top US systems. The company is now seeking pre-IPO funding at a $50 billion valuation ahead of a planned Hong Kong listing as soon as late 2026.
Moonshot AI Series F
- ▪Moonshot AI is seeking backers for a Series G pre-IPO funding round at a $50 billion pre-money valuation, aiming to secure capital before a Hong Kong initial public offering as soon as late 2026
- ▪Moonshot AI closed a Series F funding round, raising over $3.5 billion, which was significantly higher than its initial target of $1 billion to $2 billion
- ▪The Series F funding round valued Moonshot AI at $35 billion post-money, which was calculated from a $31.5 billion pre-money valuation plus the $3.5 billion in new cash
Valuation growth trajectory
- ▪Moonshot AI achieved $300 million in annual recurring revenue in June 2026, up from $200 million in April 2026
- ▪Moonshot AI's valuation grew from $300 million in June 2023 to $35 billion in July 2026, representing an increase of over 110 times in just over three years
Kimi K3 model release
- ▪Daily sales at Moonshot AI surged at least six times following the launch of the Kimi K3 model, which temporarily overwhelmed the company's GPUs and forced a pause on new user subscriptions
- ▪Moonshot AI released its Kimi K3 model on July 16, 2026, which features 2.8 trillion parameters and a 1 million-token context window
- ▪Moonshot AI open-sourced the model weights for Kimi K3 on July 27, 2026, allowing developers to download, modify, and deploy the model freely under a revenue-tiered license
Open-source closed-source AI debate
- ▪Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei advocated for restricting the flow of advanced chips to China, cracking down on industrial-scale model distillation, and requiring mandatory safety testing before releasing powerful models
- ▪A White House official accused Moonshot AI of training the Kimi K3 model on restricted Nvidia Corp. chips and utilizing model distillation from top competitors to boost performance
State-backed investor participation
- ▪Moonshot AI's Series D funding round in May 2026 raised approximately $2 billion at a $20 billion valuation, with participation from China Mobile, Guozhituo, CPE Yuanfeng, and several state-backed funds
- ▪China's National Artificial Intelligence Industry Investment Fund, a state-backed vehicle that also backed DeepSeek, was among the lead investors in Moonshot AI's Series F round
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