16 investors back Beijing AI startups in 2026. Beijing is China's AI capital. Big tech, RMB funds, and state money now lead, as US dollars pull back.
Beijing is China's clear AI capital. It led the country in AI deals.
Its LLM tigers raise huge rounds. Alibaba and Tencent back most of them.
US dollar funds have pulled back here. RMB and state money fill the gap.
Cheques run US$300K to US$1B. Big tech leads the largest rounds.
Embodied AI and robotics now draw heat. Funds chase the next wave hard.
Most term sheets land in weeks, not months. Speed favors the team that is ready.
Diligence digs deep into your model. Have every file in order first.
AI rounds move fast and run on data. Ellty keeps your files in one tracked room.
| Type | Check size | Sector focus | Website | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| HongShan | VC (USD + RMB) | US$5M-$100M+ | LLMs, enterprise AI, robotics | hsgcap.com |
| Hillhouse / GL Ventures | PE + VC | US$3M-$30M | AI chips, robotics, enterprise | hillhousecap.com |
| Qiming Venture Partners | VC (USD + RMB) | US$5M-$50M | AI chips, LLMs, multimodal | qimingvc.com |
| ZhenFund | Early-stage / angel VC | US$0.5M-$5M | AI, LLMs, enterprise, frontier | zhenfund.com |
| Sinovation Ventures | VC (USD + RMB) | US$1M-$30M | Deep tech, LLMs, AI apps | sinovationventures.com |
| IDG Capital | VC / PE | US$5M-$50M+ | LLMs, enterprise AI, semis | idgcapital.com |
| Legend Capital | VC / PE | US$5M-$50M | Autonomy, semis, enterprise | legendcapital.com.cn |
| Source Code Capital | VC | US$3M-$40M | AI apps, enterprise, internet | sourcecodecap.com |
| Shunwei Capital | VC (USD + RMB) | US$2M-$30M | Embodied AI, robotics, IoT | shunwei.com |
| 5Y Capital | VC (USD + RMB) | US$3M-$40M | LLMs, robotics, AI chips | 5ycap.com |
| GSR Ventures | VC (early-stage) | US$2M-$20M | AI, enterprise AI, healthcare AI | gsrventuresglobal.com |
| MiraclePlus | Early-stage / accelerator | ~US$300K seed | LLMs, robotics, embodied AI | miracleplus.com |
| Beijing AI Industry Fund | State / government fund | RMB tens of millions+ | Foundation models, AI startups | Beijing municipal fund |
| China Internet Investment Fund | State national fund | Strategic stakes | AI, core internet tech, cloud | State-directed fund |
| Alibaba | Corporate / strategic | US$100M-$1B+ | Foundation models, AI cloud | alibabagroup.com |
| Tencent | Corporate / strategic | US$100M-$500M+ | LLMs, AI cloud, enterprise | tencent.com |
Keep your AI data room ready for every fund
AI funds run hard diligence on your model, data, and compute. Ellty logs every view so you know who is serious before the call.
Start free 14-day trialWhat an AI investor backs
An AI investor backs a real model and data edge. They want proof it works at scale.
They look for a clear lead over rivals. Store your proof in one virtual data room.
They study your compute, data, and team. Ellty features make sharing simple.
They check who will pay for the model. A strong demo with no buyer rarely wins.
They weigh how fast you can ship. A clear roadmap signals real momentum.
They probe how your edge holds up. Open models raise the bar each month.
Ellty gives each fund one tracked link to your data. You see who studied your model first.
Previously it was a six to nine month gap, behind in everything. Now it is about three months behind in core technologies, but ahead in some areas.
16 Beijing AI investors
1. HongShan
HongShan is China's dominant venture firm.
Recent Activity: An early backer of Moonshot AI and MiniMax
LinkedIn: HongShan LinkedIn
Sector Focus: LLMs, enterprise AI, robotics
Stage Focus: Seed to growth
Check Size: US$5M-$100M+
Location: Hong Kong / Beijing
Website: hsgcap.com
2. Hillhouse / GL Ventures
GL Ventures is Hillhouse's early-stage arm.
Recent Activity: Launched a ~US$280M AI fund in 2025
Sector Focus: AI chips, robotics, enterprise
Stage Focus: Early to growth
Check Size: US$3M-$30M
Location: Beijing / Shanghai
Website: hillhousecap.com
3. Qiming Venture Partners
Qiming is a top dual-currency China VC.
Recent Activity: Saw four AI portfolio firms IPO in 2026
Sector Focus: AI chips, LLMs, multimodal
Stage Focus: Early to growth
Check Size: US$5M-$50M
Location: Shanghai / Beijing
Website: qimingvc.com
4. ZhenFund
ZhenFund is a leading Beijing angel and seed fund.
Recent Activity: Seeded Moonshot AI, now valued near US$20B
Sector Focus: AI, LLMs, enterprise, frontier
Stage Focus: Seed, angel
Check Size: US$0.5M-$5M
Location: Beijing
Website: zhenfund.com
5. Sinovation Ventures
Sinovation is Kai-Fu Lee's deep-tech fund.
Recent Activity: Kai-Fu Lee's fund; founded 01.AI
Sector Focus: Deep tech, LLMs, AI apps
Stage Focus: Early to growth
Check Size: US$1M-$30M
Location: Beijing
Website: sinovationventures.com
6. IDG Capital
IDG Capital is a longstanding China tech investor.
Recent Activity: Backed Moonshot AI's US$500M Series C
Sector Focus: LLMs, enterprise AI, semis
Stage Focus: Early to growth
Check Size: US$5M-$50M+
Location: Beijing
Website: idgcapital.com
Share one link with every Beijing AI fund
Ellty shows when HongShan or ZhenFund opens your deck. Follow up with each fund at the right time.
Start free 14-day trial7. Legend Capital
Legend Capital backs autonomy and chip startups.
Recent Activity: Backs Pony.ai and chip firm ESWIN
Sector Focus: Autonomy, semis, enterprise
Stage Focus: Early to growth
Check Size: US$5M-$50M
Location: Beijing
Website: legendcapital.com.cn
8. Source Code Capital
Source Code was an early ByteDance backer.
Recent Activity: An early backer of ByteDance's Doubao
Sector Focus: AI apps, enterprise, internet
Stage Focus: Early to growth
Check Size: US$3M-$40M
Location: Beijing
Website: sourcecodecap.com
9. Shunwei Capital
Shunwei backs embodied AI and robotics startups.
Recent Activity: Co-led Hohem's US$14M AI imaging round
LinkedIn: Shunwei Capital LinkedIn
Sector Focus: Embodied AI, robotics, IoT
Stage Focus: Early to growth
Check Size: US$2M-$30M
Location: Beijing
Website: shunwei.com
10. 5Y Capital
5Y Capital backs LLM and robotics startups.
Recent Activity: Backs MiniMax and Moonshot AI
Sector Focus: LLMs, robotics, AI chips
Stage Focus: Early to growth
Check Size: US$3M-$40M
Location: Shanghai / Beijing
Website: 5ycap.com
11. GSR Ventures
GSR is an early-stage AI fund with many unicorns.
Recent Activity: Early-stage AI fund with 11 unicorns
Sector Focus: AI, enterprise AI, healthcare AI
Stage Focus: Seed, Series A
Check Size: US$2M-$20M
Location: Beijing
Website: gsrventuresglobal.com
12. MiraclePlus
MiraclePlus is Lu Qi's startup accelerator.
Recent Activity: Lu Qi's accelerator; 136 AI startups backed
Sector Focus: LLMs, robotics, embodied AI
Stage Focus: Seed
Check Size: ~US$300K seed
Location: Beijing
Website: miracleplus.com
13. Beijing AI Industry Fund
This is Beijing's municipal AI investment fund.
Recent Activity: The first state fund to back Zhipu AI
Sector Focus: Foundation models, AI startups
Stage Focus: Growth, strategic
Check Size: RMB tens of millions+
Location: Beijing
Website: Beijing municipal fund
14. China Internet Investment Fund
CIIF is a state-directed national tech fund.
Recent Activity: Holds a state golden share in Zhipu AI
Sector Focus: AI, core internet tech, cloud
Stage Focus: Strategic
Check Size: Strategic stakes
Location: Beijing
Website: State-directed fund
15. Alibaba
Alibaba is the top backer of China's AI tigers.
Recent Activity: Backed all four of China's AI tigers
LinkedIn: Alibaba Group LinkedIn
Sector Focus: Foundation models, AI cloud
Stage Focus: Strategic, growth
Check Size: US$100M-$1B+
Location: Hangzhou
Website: alibabagroup.com
16. Tencent
Tencent runs a broad LLM-investment portfolio.
Recent Activity: Backed Moonshot, Baichuan, and Zhipu
LinkedIn: Tencent LinkedIn
Sector Focus: LLMs, AI cloud, enterprise
Stage Focus: Strategic, growth
Check Size: US$100M-$500M+
Location: Shenzhen
Website: tencent.com
Beijing's LLM tigers
Beijing is home to China's LLM tigers. Zhipu and Moonshot lead them.
These firms raise rounds worth billions. Big tech writes most of the cheques.
A cloud-credit deal often rides along too. That compute can stretch your runway.
Tsinghua and PKU feed the talent here. New startups spin out fast.
Open-source models keep costs down. That edge helps lean teams compete.
The tigers ship new models fast. Each release resets the bar again.
Talent moves between them often. A strong team can pull a round in.
Ellty keeps your model data ready to share. See our Seoul AI investors guide too.
RMB and state money
US dollar funds have pulled back here. Trade tensions cooled them.
RMB funds and the state stepped in. Beijing runs a large AI fund.
A state stake can shape your roadmap. Weigh that before you take it.
State money is patient but slow. The diligence runs long and deep.
A state backer can open doors too. It signals trust to later funds.
Plan for extra reporting either way. Build it into your timeline early.
State deals need careful due diligence. Keep every file in one place.
Ellty shows who opened each file and when. You learn which backer is serious early.
From seed to a funded scale-up
A seed round buys time to build a model. The next round wants real users.
Chinese AI rounds can grow fast. State and big-tech money joins quickly.
A clean data room keeps that pace up. Have it ready before the term sheet.
A first enterprise deal unlocks the raise. Proof of revenue draws bigger funds.
Each round raises the bar on metrics. Track usage and margins from day one.
A tight story shortens the diligence. Keep your numbers ready to defend.
Read our due diligence timeline guide. Know what each stage will ask.
Watch for due diligence red flags early. Ellty logs who opened each file and when.
How to pitch a Beijing AI investor
Lead with a model that works at scale.
- 1.Lead with a model that works at scale.AI funds want real proof, so open with benchmark results and live usage data.
- 2.Show your data edge and compute plan.A clear lead matters most, so prove your data moat and compute are defensible.
- 3.Name your first paying enterprise user.Funds want demand, so show who already pays to run your model in production.
- 4.Share one Ellty link to your whole data room.Skip scattered email attachments and track who opens which files in real time.
- 5.Follow up the same day a fund digs in.Ellty flags the moment they open your model files, so you reach out while interest is high.
How Ellty helps you land an AI investor in Beijing
You've shortlisted your Beijing AI investors already. Set up a data room before the first call.
- 1.Upload your model results, data, and deck.Set access per fund or per partner.
- 2.Share one trackable link with each fund.Each fund gets its own tracked link.
- 3.Watch opens and follow up at the right time.Use Ellty analytics to time each nudge.
Beijing AI investor questions
- HongShan, ZhenFund, and Qiming back AI. Alibaba and Tencent invest too.
- Cheques run US$300K to US$1B in 2026. Big tech leads the largest rounds.
- Less now, the mix has shifted. State and big tech lead big deals.
- It has top talent and the LLM tigers. Tsinghua and PKU feed it.
- A working model and a data edge. A clear path to real users.
- Before your very first investor call. Track who opens your model files.
