Kuaishou Spinoff Kling AI Nears $3 Billion Funding Round at $18 Billion Valuation

Kling AI, an AI video-generation startup spun off from Kuaishou, is close to completing a $3 billion fundraising round that would value the company at $18 billion after the investment, according to people familiar with the matter cited by the South China Morning Post. According to ChainCatcher, Tencent is participating in the round. The sources said the final valuation is lower than the company’s preliminary $20 billion target set in April. They added that Kling AI plans to begin the process for a Hong Kong listing within the next 12 months, following a surge in annual recurring revenue driven by the release of its latest AI video model. The company plans to use the newly raised funds and future IPO proceeds primarily for infrastructure such as computing power and data centers, as well as recruiting and retaining talent.