Zuck’s Chinese agentic prey escapes, will resume standalone ops

Meta's attempt to acquire Chinese AI startup Manus AI has failed, as China has refused to allow the acquisition. Manus AI, which launched in March 2025 with an AI "general agent" capable of performing tasks independently, had quickly gained popularity and claimed to have reached a $100 million run rate. The startup decided to move its headquarters to Singapore in December 2025 to look for investment.

Meta's founder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, expressed plans to incorporate Manus AI's technology into Meta's AI products in early 2026. However, Chinese regulators intervened in April 2026, banning foreign investment in the company. Meta subsequently withdrew from the acquisition and began untangling its relationship with Manus AI.

Manus AI announced on Tuesday that it will resume operating independently, but will need to delete some user data generated since December 29, 2025. Customers can retrieve their data until August 25, after which it will be permanently erased. The incident highlights China's efforts to maintain control over local innovators and challenge American AI companies with open-weight models.