Tencent-backed Enflame seeks $911M in Shanghai IPO
What's the deal? Shanghai Enflame Technology, a Chinese AI chipmaker backed by Tencent, is seeking to raise about 6.12 billion yuan ($911 million) in an initial public offering. It priced shares at 142.18 yuan on Shanghai's STAR Market, selling roughly 43 million shares, or 10% of its enlarged share capital.
Why now? China's AI spending boom is spilling into capital markets, as technology firms raise funds to expand capacity and speed up product development. Founded in 2018, Enflame is the last of the country's "four little dragons" of leading AI chipmakers to go public.
What's the endgame? Enflame builds AI accelerators used in cloud and data-center workloads, part of China's push to develop homegrown chip technology. Domestic demand still outstrips supply: Nvidia held 55% of China's AI accelerator shipments in 2025, while Enflame held an estimated 1.7% market share.
Its peers have drawn strong investor interest. Moore Threads TechnologyDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → soared 425% on its December debut, following Biren Technology and MetaX Integrated CircuitsDealroom has a profile for this one. Try Dealroom → to the public market.
What could go wrong? Profitability may take time, and reliance on a single customer is stark. Sales to Tencent accounted for 84% of Enflame's revenue in 2025, up from about 38% the year before. Tencent also holds a 20% stake.
Enflame's net loss narrowed to 1.2 billion yuan in 2025, from 1.5 billion yuan a year earlier, and it forecasts a loss of about 600 million yuan in the first half of 2026. Revenue is expected to more than triple year-on-year to between 10.6 billion and 11.5 billion yuan.
"Tencent's demand for AI accelerator cards has far exceeded the company's supply capacity," Enflame said in its prospectus, adding that it has prioritised key accounts to refine its technology.
The signal: Though smaller than headline deals like CXMT's blockbuster listing, Enflame's offering adds to a growing wave of Chinese listings tied to the AI boom. The financing push now spans the entire supply chain, from chipmakers to model developers, as the country races to cut its reliance on foreign chips.
Image credit: Cory M. Grenier
