Moonshot AI halted new subscriptions to Kimi K3 on Jul. 19 after demand pushed the startup’s GPU capacity close to its limit within 48 hours. Key Points: Moonshot paused new Kimi K3 subscript
Moonshot AI halted new subscriptions to Kimi K3 on Jul. 19 after demand pushed the startup’s GPU capacity close to its limit within 48 hours.
- Moonshot paused new Kimi K3 subscriptions to preserve service for existing members.
- The 2.8 trillion-parameter model offers a 1 million-token context window and native multimodal functions.
- The capacity squeeze comes as Moonshot pursues new funding and a possible Hong Kong listing.
Moonshot announced the pause through Kimi’s official X account, saying unusually heavy use had placed its available graphics processors under severe strain.
Existing subscriptions remain active. The company said it would direct available computing capacity toward current members while expanding infrastructure and reopening access in batches, though it gave no schedule.
Moonshot also divided its membership structure into two products. One plan covers Kimi Web, App and Work, while Kimi Code Membership serves programming tasks, a change intended to allocate computing resources more precisely and reduce service instability.
Kimi K3 launched around Jul. 16 with 2.8 trillion parameters, a 1 million-token context window and native multimodal capabilities. Moonshot has scheduled the public release of the model’s full weights for Jul. 27.
Interest increased after third-party evaluator Arena ranked the model first in a benchmark for building web interfaces. The result placed Kimi K3 ahead of competing systems from several major U.S. and Chinese laboratories.
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The subscription pause arrives during a rapid expansion for Moonshot, which reported $300 million in annual recurring revenue in June, largely supported by API demand.
Its valuation passed $20 billion in May, and the company is seeking new investment that could raise the figure above $30 billion. Moonshot has also sent shareholders a resolution tied to preparations for a possible Hong Kong initial public offering within about six months.
Yang Zhilin, a former Tsinghua University professor, founded the company in 2023 as Chinese developers accelerated efforts to compete with leading U.S. AI laboratories.
The immediate problem is operational rather than a sign of falling interest. Moonshot must add enough computing capacity to serve new customers without weakening performance for existing users.
AI developers have faced similar pressure as popular releases produce sudden usage spikes. Kimi K3’s launch shows that strong model demand can quickly expose infrastructure limits, even at a startup with rising revenue, investor interest and access to significant capital.
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