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Venture capital market

Venture capital market
The latest news, analysis and opinion on Venture capital market. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
Optics have been drastically revalued as AI clusters scale to unprecedented sizes. Photo: Shutterstock Images
Artificial intelligence

Exclusive | How early bet on photonics gave this Chinese venture capital firm an AI windfall

For Mi Lei, founder of venture capital firm CAS Star, the sudden fascination with photonics is less a surprise than a delayed validation.

Banking & finance

China’s private funds see assets soar by over US$400 billion amid tech boom

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US-China tech war

China rejects claims of curbing US tech funding as Beijing pursues self-reliance

Artificial intelligence

China’s AI start-up funding triples in first quarter amid bets on LLMs, robotics

The fundraising boom follows years of state-led efforts to channel capital into strategic sectors such as chips, AI and manufacturing.

AI-related start-ups in China secured more than 110 billion yuan in the first three months of the year. Photo: Shutterstock Images
Banking & finance

China private equity activity picks up as investors focus on tech, AI prospects

‘From a valuation point of view, this is still an attractive moment,’ as new growth drivers emerge from China’s tech sector, analyst says.

Technology

Hong Kong tech hub progress ‘significant’, Dalton Venture’s Steve Sun says

City’s measures to retain research talent and encourage the commercialisation of research results ‘gradually taking effect’, venture capitalist says.

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Banking & finance

HKIC, Gobi Partners and HKU launch fund to back university research start-ups

Gobi-HKU Fund I makes first bets at launch, investing in robotics and AI drug design spin-offs born from university research breakthroughs.

The partnership with HKU will help bridge the gap between research and commercialisation, according to Gobi Partners. Photo: Dickson Lee
China economy

China’s state-led venture capital revival risks losing momentum

Four government funds formed to back projects, but lack of funding diversity could risk stalling the industry again if policy shifts.

United States

Opinion | Chilling effect of US outbound investment rules will extend beyond China

Outbound investment rules introduced last year are expanding and hardening into law, chilling US investment across Asia’s tech ecosystems.

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Banking & finance

Hong Kong’s US$8 billion wealth fund eyes fintech, aerospace and AI for growth

The Hong Kong Investment Corporation will use the city’s advantages amid global competition, geopolitical challenges, CEO Clara Chan says.

The Hong Kong Investment Corporation made HK$2.34 billion in investment income in 2024, according to its annual report released in December. Photo: Jonathan Wong
IPO

From labs to listings: capital markets are the next battleground in the AI race

Stock exchanges have become another barometer in the US-China tech rivalry as markets assess a wave of start-ups in real time.

Illustration: Henry Wong
China technology

China’s nuclear fusion start-ups power up with record funding round

Startorus Fusion raised US$143 million, a record for a private firm, while Supermag New Energy received ‘several hundred million yuan’.

Mergers & Acquisitions

China’s M&A revival points to deeper investor confidence in growth prospects

Deal value is expected to rise, with strategic transactions and overseas ambitions driving momentum.

Banking & finance

China launches venture capital fund to lead the charge on tech investment

The fund, which will put state-backed money behind early tech bets, could guide trillions of yuan in private capital to chosen sectors.

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China’s new national venture capital fund has made investments in emerging technology like quantum computing an explicit priority. Photo: Xinhua
United States

China’s AI sector poised for growth despite US restrictions: venture capitalist

China’s AI sector gains confidence with DeepSeek’s emergence, but tech ecosystem needs to improve, GSR United Capital’s Zhou Qi says.

China and the US are the two top players in global AI development, with the former leading in humanoid robotics and open-source large language models, according to a venture capitalist. Photo: Reuters
Robotics

China’s Deep Robotics raises US$70 million as sector draws more investors

Company founder Zhu Qiuguo says the new funding would be used for research and the recruitment of top robotics talent.

Banking & finance

Healthcare and tech to drive Asia-Pacific private equity deals amid slower growth

Asia-Pacific private equity managers are forecasting higher returns and fewer geopolitical risks than peers elsewhere, a new survey finds.

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Fashion

How did Kim Kardashian’s Skims become a US$5 billion brand?

The shapewear and athleisure brand founded by Kardashian has been valued in the billions after a recent round of fundraising led by Goldman Sachs Alternatives in the US.

Kim Kardashian at the Skims Swim Miami pop-up shop in March 2022. Photo: Getty Images for ABA
Banking & finance

Opinion | As markets grow more fragile, matter of time before the bubble bursts

The news and stories that move markets could well be a leading indicator of when markets fail.

Artificial intelligence

US start-up Anthropic unveils cheaper model to widen AI’s appeal

Haiku 4.5 offers coding abilities similar to Sonnet 4 but at about one-third the cost, the company says.

Artificial intelligence

Nvidia to invest in Musk’s xAI as part of US$20 billion funding

Nvidia is investing as much as US$2 billion in the equity portion of the deal, sources say.

The xAI logo. Photo: Reuters
Artificial intelligence

AI dominates venture capital investing in 2025, pulling in US$192.7 billion

That puts 2025 on track to be the first year where more than half of total VC dollars go into the AI industry, according to PitchBook data.

In the June quarter, US-based venture capital firms dedicated 62.7 per cent of dollars invested to AI companies, while global investors allocated 53.2 per cent. Photo: Shutterstock
Banking & finance

Blackstone hits US$10 billion goal on Asia buyout fund amid PE chill

Fundraising amid investor caution about private equity amid high borrowing costs, fewer listings and declining secondary buyouts.

Artificial intelligence

Anthropic says new model can code on its own for 30 hours straight

Claude Sonnet 4.5 is also intended to excel at using a person’s computer to take actions for them, the company says.

Artificial intelligence

Alibaba leads US$60 million investment in AI video generation start-up AIsphere

AIsphere’s PixVerse has over 100 million users globally, more than double the number it had at the start of the year.

PixVerse’s ‘Venom effect’ video template went viral on TikTok late last year. Photo: Handout
Banking & finance

Qatari fund invests US$2 million in CK Asset-backed start-up Nexx

Doha-based Rasmal Ventures, backed by the Qatar Investment Authority, invests US$2 million in Hong Kong’s Nexx.

From left, Nexx Global’s CEO Oscar Hui, chairman Houston Huang and vice-chairman John Chan. Photo: Handout
Artificial intelligence

Alibaba Cloud leads US$140 million funding round for AI start-up X Square Robot

The growing investor interest in embodied intelligence reflects the rapid advances being made by China’s humanoid robot makers.

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Artificial intelligence

US start-up Anthropic blocks Chinese firms’ subsidiaries from AI access

The changes mark an escalation from previous measures that targeted only companies located within China.

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