DeepSeek Entrepreneur’s Lucrative Bet:
Liang Wenfeng, the entrepreneur behind AI start-up DeepSeek, seems to have made a lucrative move with the recent stock market debut of Moore Threads Technology in Shanghai.
Liang is not just known for his work in artificial intelligence. He also co-founded the High-Flyer Quantitative Fund, a hedge fund that took a significant position in Moore Threads before its listing. Through two investment entities, High-Flyer snapped up more than 82,000 Moore Threads shares at roughly 114 yuan each. This makes it one of the top institutional investors in the offering. South China Morning Post
Record-Setting IPO Reflects Beijing’s Strategy:
Moore Threads’ IPO comes at a pivotal moment for China’s semiconductor industry. The STAR Market, modeled on the U.S. Nasdaq, was created to help high-technology firms raise capital more easily. Moore Threads’ path to the public markets was unusually fast. Taking just around88days from filing to approval. It is a record speed that reflects both the company’s strategic priority and Beijing’s broader push for domestic chip self-sufficiency. Wikipedia+1
Growth and AI Focus Despite Headwinds:
Founded in 2020 by former Nvidia executive Zhang Jianzhong, Moore Threads has grown rapidly despite facing headwinds, including U.S. sanctions that restricted access to certain advanced technologies and manufacturing partners. Wikipedia
The company began by producing GPUs aimed at gaming and general-purpose computing. It has increasingly focused on products for AI training and inference, the high-performance computing applications that underpin large language models and other next-generation AI systems. euronews
Explosive Market Debut and Investor Profit:
When Moore Threads’ shares began trading, they surged more than fivefold, delivering a swift gain on the fund’s holding. Based on recent closing prices, that translated to an estimated ¥40 million (about US $5.6 million) profit for High-Flyer over just a couple of trading days. South China Morning Post
Moore Threads itself raised roughly 8 billion yuan in its IPO. Making it the second-largest listing in mainland China this year. South China Morning Post
“China’s Answer to Nvidia” & Future Challenges:
The strong market reception for Moore Threads’ shares reflects broader enthusiasm among Chinese investors for domestic chipmakers. The company has been dubbed “China’s answer to Nvidia.” It fits into Beijing’s strategic push for greater technological self-sufficiency, which has become a centerpiece of the country’s economic planning. South China Morning Post
Whether Moore Threads can translate its explosive IPO debut into lasting market success remains to be seen. Analysts note that the company still faces stiff competition. Both from established global players like Nvidia and from domestic rivals with stronger market positions in specific segments. Barron’s
Nonetheless, the company’s rapid entry into public markets and record-setting stock performance signal a bold chapter in China’s chip story. For investors like Liang Wenfeng, these early returns suggest that backing strategic technology firms in China’s burgeoning AI ecosystem can pay off handsomely, albeit in an environment shaped as much by geopolitics as by innovation. mint
