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- StepStar
StepStar Valuation, Funding & Investors
StepStar is valued at $1B as of December 2024.
Last StepStar valuation
$1B
Series B · Dec 2024
Last StepStar funding round
$2.5B
Undisclosed stage · May 2026
Cumulative funding StepStar raised
$3.2B
across 4 funding rounds
Key investors in StepStar
Qiming Venture Partners
Tencent
5Y Capital
Hong Kong Investment Corporation Limited
Shanghai State-owned Capital Investment
SDIC Fund Management
StepStar Overview
About StepStar
StepFun is a Shanghai-based Shanghai artificial-intelligence company developing multimodal foundation models and agent systems for consumer and enterprise applications. Its model family spans language, vision, audio, video and reasoning, with APIs and agent tooling intended for both cloud and device deployment. StepFun serves developers, enterprises and device manufacturers that incorporate generative AI into applications, hardware and workflow products. The company describes a mixed commercial model based on device-side licensing and usage-based cloud access rather than a single software subscription. It has attracted strategic investors from software, telecommunications, consumer electronics and state-backed capital while preparing a broader international and capital-markets presence. HKIC’s annual report identifies StepFun as an investee and emphasizes its role in the fund’s foundation-model and next-generation artificial-intelligence portfolio.
Founded
2023
HQ
Website
Status
Privately held
Customer focus
B2B
Revenue model
Licensing, Subscription
Valuation
$1B (Dec 2024)
StepStar Valuation
StepStar is currently valued at $1B, based on its Series B in December 2024.
The $3M round was led by Shanghai State-owned Capital Investment, with participation from Tencent, Qiming Venture Partners, 5Y Capital and Wuyuan Capital.
StepStar valuation by funding round
| Date | Stage | Valuation |
|---|---|---|
| Dec 2024 | Series B | $1B |
StepStar Funding History
StepStar has raised a total of $3.2B across 4 funding rounds.
StepStar's first fundraising round was a undisclosed-stage round in January 2024. The most recent completed round was a $2.5B undisclosed-stage round in May 2026.
StepStar funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Valuation | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 2026 | Undisclosed stage | Hong Kong Investment Corporation Limited | $2.5B | - | On 8 May 2026, multiple May 2026 reports said StepFun completed or was completing a nearly USD 2.5 billion financing and identified HKIC among the participating investors or current shareholders. The disclosed financing total was USD 2,500 million, although HKIC’s individual cheque and resulting ownership were not stated. The round brought in financial and strategic investors from telecommunications, smartphone manufacturing and semiconductors as StepFun prepared for a possible Hong Kong listing. Its model family spans language, vision, audio, video and reasoning, with APIs and agent tooling intended for both cloud and device deployment. StepFun serves developers, enterprises and device manufacturers that incorporate generative AI into applications, hardware and workflow products. The company describes a mixed commercial model based on device-side licensing and usage-based cloud access rather than a single software subscription. It has attracted strategic investors from software, telecommunications, consumer electronics and state-backed capital while preparing a broader international and capital-markets presence. The investment fits HKIC’s mandate to seek medium- to long-term returns while using patient capital to strengthen Hong Kong’s technology, commercial and talent ecosystem. No evidence indicates that the transaction was debt, a grant, a fund-level commitment, an acquisition of control or a secondary sale. |
| Jan 2026 | Series B | SDIC Fund Management; Xuhui Venture Capital; China Life Private Equity Investment; Tencent; Qiming Venture Partners; Wuxi Liangxi Science and Technology Innovation Industry Investment Fund Partnership; Shanghai State-owned Capital Investment; 5Y Capital; Pudong Chuangtou; Xiamen Itg Group; Huaqin Technology | $719M | - | - |
| Dec 2024 | Series B | Shanghai State-owned Capital Investment (lead); Tencent; Qiming Venture Partners; 5Y Capital; Wuyuan Capital | $3M | $1B | StepStar is a Shanghai-based foundation model company established about one year prior to December 2024. It raised a Series B funding round led by Shanghai State-owned Capital Investment, achieving unicorn status at a $1 billion valuation. The company focuses on AI foundation models in the competitive Chinese large model sector. This round positioned StepStar among new unicorns in 2024, amid a year where 109 companies joined the unicorn board, adding significant value and funding to the ecosystem. StepStar's achievement highlights investor interest in AI foundation models despite a cooling in large-scale financings compared to prior years. |
| Jan 2024 | Undisclosed stage | Hong Kong Investment Corporation Limited | - | - | During 2024, with the precise date not publicly disclosed, hKIC’s official portfolio timeline positions its initial StepFun investment shortly before the 2025 marker. Neither HKIC’s cheque size nor the resulting ownership percentage or valuation was disclosed. That initial position supports a Shanghai multimodal foundation-model company that HKIC later described as one of its core AI investments. Its model family spans language, vision, audio, video and reasoning, with APIs and agent tooling intended for both cloud and device deployment. StepFun serves developers, enterprises and device manufacturers that incorporate generative AI into applications, hardware and workflow products. The company describes a mixed commercial model based on device-side licensing and usage-based cloud access rather than a single software subscription. It has attracted strategic investors from software, telecommunications, consumer electronics and state-backed capital while preparing a broader international and capital-markets presence. The investment fits HKIC’s mandate to seek medium- to long-term returns while using patient capital to strengthen Hong Kong’s technology, commercial and talent ecosystem. No evidence indicates that the transaction was debt, a grant, a fund-level commitment, an acquisition of control or a secondary sale. |
Who has invested in StepStar?
13 investors have backed StepStar across its funding rounds, including Qiming Venture Partners, Tencent, 5Y Capital, Hong Kong Investment Corporation Limited, Shanghai State-owned Capital Investment and SDIC Fund Management.
Lead investors include Shanghai State-owned Capital Investment.
StepStar Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Participant | Dec 2024 | ||
| 2 | Participant | Dec 2024 | ||
| 2 | Lead | Dec 2024 | ||
| 2 | Participant | Dec 2024 | ||
| 2 | Participant | Jan 2024 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Jan 2026 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Jan 2026 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Jan 2026 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Jan 2026 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Jan 2026 | ||
| 1 | Participant | Dec 2024 | ||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all 13 StepStar investors. Start Free Trial | ||||
Benchmark 350K+ Funding Rounds and Disclosed VC Valuation Multiples
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Start Free TrialInvestments by StepStar
StepStar has invested in 2 companies to date.
Latest investment by StepStar was on September 9th 2026. StepStar invested in Chipchip Microelectronics in their Angel round.
Latest Investments by StepStar
| Description | Chipchip Microelectronics is a semiconductor company engaged in integrated circuit design, technical services, hardware manufacturing, and supporting software development for computing and circuit applications. | Dexmal is a Chinese startup advancing embodied intelligence technologies for robotics. The company develops artificial intelligence software, intelligent robots, and industrial automation systems including system integration services. Dexmal manufactures collaborative robots for assembly lines and warehouses, alongside technical consulting for AI deployment in manufacturing. Based in Shenzhen, it supplies components to electronics firms in the Greater Bay Area, focusing on real-time motion control and machine vision algorithms. |
| HQ Country | - | |
| HQ City | - | Beijing |
| Deal Date | 9 Sep 2026 | 4 Jun 2026 |
| Round | Angel | Undisclosed stage |
| Raised | undisclosed | undisclosed |
| Investors | - | Hengxu Capital; SenseTime Group; Knowledge Atlas Technology; Huaqin Technology |
| Valuation | undisclosed | undisclosed |
| EV/Revenue | ||
| EV/EBITDA | ||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all StepStar investments and their VC round multiples. Start Free Trial | ||
StepStar Competitors
StepStar competitors include listed companies like Appier Group and Beijing CTJ Info Tech, and private ones like Kakao Enterprise, Mirendil, AUI (Augmented Intelligence) and PolyAI.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Private | - | - | $1B | - | ||
| -- | Private | - | - | $1B | - | |
| Publicly listed | $277M | $43M | $937M | 2.6x | ||
| Publicly listed | $124M | $13M | $850M | 4.4x | ||
| Private | - | - | $750M | - | ||
| Private | - | - | $750M | - |
StepStar Public Comps
StepStar is still privately-owned, but its public comps include ODDITY Tech, iFLYHealth, Appier Group, Extreme Vision, Beijing Haitian Ruisheng, Optasia, Beijing CTJ Info Tech, Wenge AI, Arcs Co and Shenzhen Ysstech Info.
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| $810M | $131M | 1.7x | 2.0x | 10.4x | 26.2x | |||
| $137M | ($7M) | 7.4x | 5.8x | (145.6x) | 576.1x | |||
| $277M | $43M | 3.2x | 2.6x | 20.4x | 14.1x | |||
| $44M | ($6M) | 19.0x | 10.0x | (136.5x) | - | |||
| $57M | $5M | 19.0x | 19.5x | 222.7x | - | |||
| $265M | $79M | 4.5x | 3.6x | 15.1x | 10.3x | |||
| $124M | $13M | 4.8x | 4.4x | 46.4x | 29.5x | |||
| $61M | ($20M) | 16.6x | - | (49.9x) | - | |||
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Common questions about StepStar
| When was StepStar founded? | StepStar was founded in 2023. |
| Where is StepStar headquartered? | StepStar is headquartered in Shanghai, China. |
| Is StepStar publicly listed? | No, StepStar is a private, VC-backed company. |
| What is StepStar's valuation? | StepStar was last valued at $1B in its Series B in December 2024. |
| How much funding has StepStar raised? | StepStar has raised $3.2B across 4 funding rounds. |
| What was StepStar's last funding round? | StepStar's last funding round was a $2.5B undisclosed-stage round in May 2026. |
| Who are StepStar's investors? | StepStar's investors include Tencent, Qiming Venture Partners, Shanghai State-owned Capital Investment, 5Y Capital, Hong Kong Investment Corporation Limited, SDIC Fund Management, Xuhui Venture Capital, China Life Private Equity Investment, Wuxi Liangxi Science and Technology Innovation Industry Investment Fund Partnership, Pudong Chuangtou and 3 others. |
| Which companies are comparable to StepStar? | Companies comparable to StepStar include Kakao Enterprise, Mirendil, Appier Group, Beijing CTJ Info Tech, AUI (Augmented Intelligence) and PolyAI. |
| How many companies has StepStar invested in? | StepStar has invested in 2 companies, including Chipchip Microelectronics and Dexmal. |
| What was StepStar's last investment? | In September 2026, StepStar invested in Chipchip Microelectronics' angel round. |
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