Zhipu AI shares surged 13.35% approaching a $126 billion market cap, while MiniMax plunged nearly 18% to close at HK$297.4 on their first lock-up expiry events on July 8 and 9 respectively. Zhipu AI faced only 5.76% of shares unlocking held by 11 cornerstone investors primarily state-backed funds, whereas MiniMax faced 44.85% of shares unlocking, expanding tradable float from 3% to nearly 50%, with early VC investors including Hillhouse, Sequoia, IDG, Alibaba, and miHoYo potentially able to exit. Zhipu AI has benefited from the market pivot toward Agent and AI Coding applications, with gross margins reaching 41% in 2025. MiniMax, which commanded twice Zhipu’s valuation at IPO, saw its multimodal story cool after OpenAI Sora shutdown and video model monetization struggles, with a gross margin of 25% and its M3 flagship model permanently discounted 50% after one week. MiniMax faces additional headwinds from new AI companion regulations taking effect July 15, which restrict emotional interaction AI features and prohibit virtual companion services for minors. MiniMax advantages include overseas revenue comprising 73% of 2025 total, serving 236 million users across 200+ countries, with revenue doubled year-over-year while marketing costs fell 40%.