Zhipu overtakes MiniMax in Hong Kong AI stock race

Zhipu, an AI firm based in Beijing, has surpassed Shanghai's MiniMax in market capitalization on the Hong Kong stock exchange, reversing their standings from earlier this year. On January 8, Zhipu's initial trading day, it achieved a market cap of HK$57.9 billion. In contrast, MiniMax debuted the following day with a market cap of HK$106.7 billion, nearly double Zhipu's. However, by the close of trading on Monday, Zhipu's market cap soared to HK$585.8 billion, about 2.7 times MiniMax's HK$159.3 billion. Analysts suggest this shift is due to impending share lock-up expirations, enhanced AI model capabilities, and a preference for enterprise-oriented companies. They caution that the disparity may increase as MiniMax faces significant lock-up expirations, while Zhipu gains from advanced models and new liquidity through the Stock Connect program.