MiniMax surges in Hong Kong debut, marking yet another Chinese AI listing
Chinese AI startup MiniMax Group saw its shares surge as much as 90% during its first day of trading on the Hong Kong stock exchange Friday. The blockbuster debut followed the company's initial public offering, which raised HK$4.8 billion (approximately $620 million), solidifying its position as the second major Chinese large language model developer to go public this week.
The spectacular first-day performance significantly outpaced its domestic rival, Zhipu AI, which listed just a day earlier and closed its debut session with a 13% gain. MiniMax's strong reception highlights robust investor appetite for China's homegrown AI sector, even as these firms navigate U.S. export restrictions on advanced semiconductors and intense global competition.
A Key Player Among China's "AI Tigers"
Founded in 2021 and backed by Chinese tech giants Alibaba and Tencent, MiniMax is categorized among China's "AI tigers"—startups building foundational models to compete with leaders like OpenAI. The company specializes in a range of AI applications, including chatbots, image generation, and video synthesis. According to its prospectus, MiniMax plans to allocate the IPO proceeds primarily toward research and development.
The company's financials reveal a landscape typical of high-growth tech firms: rapid revenue expansion coupled with significant losses as it invests heavily in scaling. For the nine months ending September 30, 2025, MiniMax reported revenue of $53.4 million, a 174% year-over-year increase, alongside a net loss of $512 million. The firm acknowledged it remains in the "nascent stage" of monetizing its technology.
A Signal of Market Confidence and Strategic Ambition
The successful back-to-back listings of MiniMax and Zhipu underscore a strategic push by Chinese AI firms to accelerate capital raising and technological development. These IPOs provide crucial funding to compete in the global AI race while operating within the constraints of U.S. technology export controls. The market's enthusiastic response suggests strong confidence in the long-term potential of China's AI ecosystem, despite current profitability challenges and geopolitical headwinds.
