DeepSeek dispute broadens as Metagent founders and ABCDE clash over investment terms

A public dispute involving Li Bojie widened after he said he ended a DeepSeek interview when he was accused of cheating during a coding round, before the episode spilled into a separate conflict over ABCDE Capital’s 2024 investment in Metagent. Li said the agreement was for a $1.5 million investment but only $500,000 was received, while ABCDE’s equity was still calculated on the full amount. Du Jun, a co-founder of ABCDE, disputed that characterization, saying the investment was structured as staged funding: an initial $500,000 paid in February 2024, followed by a further $1 million contingent on project progress and contractual conditions. In later remarks, Du said Li stopped fulfilling investment-agreement obligations after funding, including sharing business updates and financial data, and then became unreachable. He added that partner Zhuang Siyuan also stopped responding after repeated requests for financial reports, and that the project later ended without result. Li said the funding shortfall constrained hiring and research and development, forced pay cuts, and added pressure before his October 2024 departure. He also said he had disclosed the cap table and business progress before leaving, while Du had accused Li Bojie and Zhuang Siyuan of failing to meet post-investment reporting obligations and later going out of contact. The dispute has since drawn in other investors and former ABCDE staff, who also raised concerns about Metagent’s execution and fundraising conduct.