MiniMax once led Zhipu in Hong Kong’s AI stock race. How the tables have turned

When Chinese artificial intelligence developers Zhipu AI and MiniMax made their debuts on the Hong Kong stock exchange in January, investors initially saw one as a better bet than the other.

Beijing-based Zhipu closed its first trading day on January 8 with a market capitalisation of HK$57.9 billion (US$7.4 billion). A day later, Shanghai-based MiniMax listed at HK$106.7 billion, almost twice as large.

Five months on, however, Zhipu – traded as Knowledge Atlas Technology – has surged ahead. At the market close on Monday, its market cap stood at HK$585.8 billion, nearly 2.7 times higher than MiniMax’s HK$159.3 billion.

The reversal, analysts said, reflected looming share unlocks, stronger AI model capabilities and investor preference for enterprise-focused businesses.

Analysts also warned the gap could widen further in the coming months, with MiniMax facing a major round of share lock-up expiries and Zhipu benefiting from advanced model capabilities and fresh liquidity from the Stock Connect programme.