BEIJING, Aug 13 (Reuters) - Chinese artificial intelligence startup DeepSeek on Thursday formally released its official V4 Pro model, aiming to regain ground against fast-moving domestic rivals as it expands hiring, computing capacity and fundraising efforts.

DeepSeek said the V4-Pro-0813 greatly enhances agent capabilities and is available through the API, APP and Web channels. The company also said it will raise API pricing for its V4 Pro and V4 Flash models and introduce peak and off-peak pricing.

The release will be closely watched after DeepSeek's cheaper V4 Flash model unexpectedly outperformed the April preview of V4 Pro in several independent tests. That was unusual because Pro is designed as the company's more capable product, suggesting DeepSeek had improved its technology rapidly between the preview release and the official launch.

DeepSeek became one of China's most closely watched AI companies after its R1 model went viral in early 2025, raising questions about whether powerful AI systems could be built at much lower cost than those of U.S. rivals.

Its early lead has since been challenged by a string of releases from Chinese competitors including Moonshot AI, Zhipu AI, MiniMax, Alibaba and ByteDance.

DeepSeek has also faced the harder task of turning its prominence into a lasting business. Reuters reported in July that the company was planning a new fundraising round at a valuation of about $74 billion, weeks after raising about $7.4 billion in its first outside financing round in June.

The fundraising marked a change for a company that had long avoided external capital. It also reflects the growing cost of competing in AI, which requires large investments in computer chips, data centres and specialised staff.

DeepSeek has said it aims to at least double staffing across departments, including data-centre and AI-agent teams. Reuters also reported in July that it had increased private hiring of chip-design engineers to develop its own AI chip, an effort that could reduce reliance on suppliers including Nvidia and Huawei.