DeepSeek founder and CEO Liang Wenfeng has become the world’s richest founder of an AI model startup. This comes after the Chinese company’s latest funding round more than doubled his estimated net worth, the Bloomberg Billionaires Index claims. The development comes months after DeepSeek was accused by US AI companies, including Anthropic and OpenAI, of improperly using their AI models to improve its own systems. According to a Bloomberg report, Liang’s net worth is estimated at $36 billion, up from about $16.7 billion, placing him ahead of Anthropic co-founder and CEO Dario Amodei and OpenAI co-founder Greg Brockman among the founders of AI model companies.In February, OpenAI accused DeepSeek of using techniques to replicate capabilities developed by OpenAI and other US AI companies. In a letter to the US House Select Committee, the ChatGPT maker wrote: “Ahead of DeepSeek’s expected Lunar New Year release of a new, more powerful model, we are providing the Committee with an updated assessment of its evolving distillation tactics.”Later the same month, Anthropic said DeepSeek, along with Chinese AI companies MiniMax and Moonshot, had misused its Claude AI model as part of what it described as “industrial-scale campaigns.” According to Anthropic, the companies created around 24,000 fraudulent accounts and conducted more than 16 million exchanges with Claude. The company alleged that they were using a technique known as AI model distillation.While describing distillation as “a legitimate training method,” Anthropic said it “can also be used for illicit purposes,” including “to acquire powerful capabilities from other labs in a fraction of the time, and at a fraction of the cost, that it would take to develop them independently.”
How DeepSeek founder and CEO Liang Wenfeng built his fortune
According to Bloomberg, most of Liang’s wealth comes from his ownership of DeepSeek. The AI startup’s valuation increased from $10 billion in April to $50 billion following its $7.4 billion funding round in June 2026. Bloomberg estimates Liang invested $3 billion in the round and currently owns approximately 78% of the company.Unlike many US AI startups, in which founders have significantly diluted their ownership after multiple funding rounds, Liang has retained a majority stake, contributing to the sharp increase in his personal wealth.The Bloomberg ranking only considered companies whose primary business and the majority of revenue come directly from AI models. It excluded diversified technology companies such as Alibaba and Tencent, as well as businesses focused on AI infrastructure, including semiconductor and data centre firms.Born in 1985 in Zhanjiang, Guangdong province, Liang studied electronic engineering at Zhejiang University before earning a master’s degree in information and communication engineering.He founded DeepSeek in 2023 as a spin-off from the AI division of Zhejiang High-Flyer Asset Management, the hedge fund he established with two university classmates.According to Bloomberg, High-Flyer had accumulated advanced graphics processing units (GPUs) before US export restrictions tightened, providing DeepSeek with the computing resources needed to develop its AI models.DeepSeek drew international attention in early 2025 after releasing an AI model that delivered performance comparable to leading US AI systems while reportedly requiring lower development costs. The company has since introduced its V4 model and said it is compatible with AI chips developed by Huawei.Bloomberg estimates Liang’s $36 billion fortune now makes him China’s eighth-richest person, behind Cambricon Technologies co-founder Chen Tianshi.