Chinese artificial intelligence startup MiniMax could become one of the fastest AI companies globally to reach an initial public offering, taking just over four years from its founding to a market debut.

The Shanghai-based company published its prospectus on Wednesday after clearing its listing hearing at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Dec.17. Founded in December 2021, MiniMax is expected to begin trading shares next month, following the end of the holiday period.

According to the prospectus, MiniMax’s net loss widened sharply to $465 million last year from $1.5 million a year earlier, while revenue surged 782% to $30.5 million. The company has accumulated losses of about $1.3 billion over the past four years.

MiniMax said the losses were driven by heavy early-stage investment in large language model research and development, AI computing infrastructure, and fair-value losses on financial liabilities. It added that losses are expected to expand significantly this year, mainly due to rising R&D expenses.

The company’s financial profile highlights a broader pattern across the AI sector, where rapid revenue growth often comes alongside sustained cash burn. High growth, high investment and high losses have become defining features of many AI developers racing to commercialize large models amid intense competition and rapid technological change.

Prospectuses from MiniMax and Zhipu AI, another Chinese AI firm that recently passed its Hong Kong IPO hearing, show that revenues at leading domestic AI startups continue to grow at a fast pace, with commercialization accelerating and usage volumes and willingness to pay increasing.

However, the documents also underscore the challenges facing the sector, as fierce competition and frequent technology upgrades require sustained capital投入, keeping profitability elusive for many companies despite surging top-line growth.