Macquarie raises Zhipu AI revenue target on coding strength

Macquarie raises Zhipu AI revenue target on coding strength

US concludes third round of strikes against Iran after Trump reinstates blockade Investing.com -- Macquarie lifted its annual recurring revenue target for Zhipu AI to $2 billion for 2026 and $4.5 billion for 2027, citing the company’s leading position in code generation capabilities. The investment bank said Zhipu’s ARR crossed $1 billion in July, ahead of its full-year target. The company’s GLM 5-2 model has driven broader adoption and faster development cycles, according to the report.

Zhipu’s stock gained 1,316% year-to-date, while competitor Minimax rose 35% and the Hang Seng Index fell 6% during the same period. Both Zhipu and Minimax completed new equity placements after their first post-IPO lock-up periods expired on July 8 and July 9. Macquarie said the additional funding addresses near-term capital needs for compute infrastructure investments required to support growing usage.

Minimax’s ARR grew from $100 million in December 2025 to $400 million in April 2026. The company remains on track to reach $1 billion in ARR by year-end, representing 10-fold growth over 12 months. Zhipu AI founder Dr. Tang outlined the company’s "Touch-High Plan" on Friday, focusing on long-horizon reasoning, autonomous agents, self-training architectures, and AI safety governance.

Macquarie recommended a basket strategy for investors to reduce risk while maintaining exposure to China’s AI model sector as competition continues to develop.