Exclusive | LiblibAI Raises $130 Million in Funding Led by Sequoia and CMC Capital
Text by Shi Jiaxiang
Exclusive information obtained by "Undercurrent Waves" reveals that LiblibAI has recently completed a Series B financing round of $130 million, jointly led by Sequoia China, CMC Capital, and the strategic investment arm of a major tech company.
This is the largest publicly disclosed financing in the Chinese AI application field so far this year. The last comparable one was Manus, which had a valuation of $500 million and raised $80 million.
Last month, LiblibAI released its 2.0 version, officially evolving from a model community into a one-stop AI creation studio. LiblibAI, which is aggressive in its business expansion, has matched its pace with an equally rapid financing speed.
According to "Undercurrent Waves," LiblibAI's overall business has not yet achieved full profitability, which might be part of the reason for their decision to seek another round of financing. However, a person familiar with the matter explained to "Undercurrent Waves" that in the highly competitive VC investment landscape of the agent field, "money is a greater barrier."
Tech giants have no boundaries. Under the pressure of model providers, entrepreneurs in the AI application field have a deeper understanding of this business rule. Today, capital is gathering at an unprecedented speed. The launch of OpenAI's Sora App has made LiblibAI, which has chosen to seek another round of financing, more convinced that if you can't grow bigger faster, you won't have a chance.
This almost cruel realization partly stems from the team's experience of being on the verge of bankruptcy in the early days of their startup.
Initially, LiblibAI completed a $3.5 million angel round of financing from GSR Ventures, Banyan Capital, and Source Code Capital at a valuation of $15 million. At that time, they believed that "after raising a round of funds, it's time to focus on the business."
It was September 2023. LiblibAI had only been online for four months when it was taken offline due to the failure to complete the filing for its large - scale model. Meanwhile, to gain a leading position in the market, the company invested over $3 million in subsidy wars in the early stage. By March 2024, there was only $4,000 left in the company's account.
During this period, they met with almost all the investors they could reach, but no institution was willing to invest in LiblibAI, which was then valued at only $30 million.
Finally, a strategic investment from an internet company provided the much - needed rescue funds.
This experience has, to some extent, changed LiblibAI's view on financing. Subsequently, the company completed three rounds of financing totaling over $20 million in just a few months, led by Mingzhi Capital, Yingce Capital, and Shunwei Capital. By then, their thinking had changed to "stockpiling tens of millions of dollars for the next two or three years."
During the most difficult times, LiblibAI rejected multiple acquisition offers, stating that "they are not starting a business just for the sake of it, but to win."
In the past, a company could "catch up later after ten years," but now, the high costs of computing power and marketing mean that if you don't have enough money, it's difficult to provide large - scale services.
The battle in the AI application field has entered the era of the Matthew effect. Only one dominant player will remain in a single track, and no one wants to be the second.