HomeChina blocks Meta's $2B Manus deal after probe
China’s top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), announced Monday that it has blocked Meta’s $2 billion acquisition of Manus, an agentic AI startup founded by Chinese engineers. The company relocated to Singapore before Mark Zuckerberg acquired it late last year.
This move ranks as one of China’s most forceful interventions in a cross-border deal, extending beyond the usual U.S.-China tensions into the broader AI landscape. For Meta, the ruling could significantly hinder its ambitions in the rapidly evolving AI agents sector.
Without providing any justification, China’s NDRC ordered both parties to fully unwind the transaction.
“The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) has made a decision to prohibit foreign investment in the Manus project in accordance with laws and regulations, and has required the parties involved to withdraw the acquisition transaction,” it stated.
However, the situation is far from simple. As of March, roughly 100 Manus employees had already moved into Meta’s Singapore offices, with founders taking on executive roles. CEO Xiao Hong now reports directly to Meta COO Javier Olivan. Manus CEO Hong and Chief Scientist Yichao Ji are reportedly under exit bans that prevent them from leaving mainland China.
“The transaction complied fully with applicable law. We anticipate an appropriate resolution to the inquiry,” a Meta spokesperson told TechCrunch.
Founded in 2022 by Hong, Ji, and Tao Zhang, Manus relocated its headquarters from China to Singapore around mid-2025. Just months later, Meta approached the company. Meta announced its acquisition of Manus in December 2025 for roughly $2 billion to $3 billion, planning to integrate its agent technology directly into Meta AI.
Meta has agreed to acquire Singapore-based AI startup Manus, with the deal requiring a complete exit from Chinese ownership and operations, per Nikkei Asia. But the company’s origins trace back to China. Manus’ founders previously established its parent company, Butterfly Effect, in Beijing in 2022 before relocating to Singapore. That background has drawn scrutiny in Washington, where Senator John Cornyn has already raised concerns about Benchmark’s investment in the company, questioning whether American capital should flow to a Chinese-linked firm, TechCrunch noted, citing Cornyn’s post on X.
Manus did not respond to TechCrunch’s request for comment.
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China’s top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), announced Monday that it has blocked Meta’s $2 billion acquisition of Manus, an agentic AI startup founded by Chinese engineers. The company relocated to Singapore before Mark Zuckerberg acquired it late last year.
This move ranks as one of China’s most forceful interventions in a cross-border deal, extending beyond the usual U.S.-China tensions into the broader AI landscape. For Meta, the ruling could significantly hinder its ambitions in the rapidly evolving AI agents sector.
Without providing any justification, China’s NDRC ordered both parties to fully unwind the transaction.
“The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) has made a decision to prohibit foreign investment in the Manus project in accordance with laws and regulations, and has required the parties involved to withdraw the acquisition transaction,” it stated.
However, the situation is far from simple. As of March, roughly 100 Manus employees had already moved into Meta’s Singapore offices, with founders taking on executive roles. CEO Xiao Hong now reports directly to Meta COO Javier Olivan. Manus CEO Hong and Chief Scientist Yichao Ji are reportedly under exit bans that prevent them from leaving mainland China.
“The transaction complied fully with applicable law. We anticipate an appropriate resolution to the inquiry,” a Meta spokesperson told TechCrunch.
Founded in 2022 by Hong, Ji, and Tao Zhang, Manus relocated its headquarters from China to Singapore around mid-2025. Just months later, Meta approached the company. Meta announced its acquisition of Manus in December 2025 for roughly $2 billion to $3 billion, planning to integrate its agent technology directly into Meta AI.
Meta has agreed to acquire Singapore-based AI startup Manus, with the deal requiring a complete exit from Chinese ownership and operations, per Nikkei Asia. But the company’s origins trace back to China. Manus’ founders previously established its parent company, Butterfly Effect, in Beijing in 2022 before relocating to Singapore. That background has drawn scrutiny in Washington, where Senator John Cornyn has already raised concerns about Benchmark’s investment in the company, questioning whether American capital should flow to a Chinese-linked firm, TechCrunch noted, citing Cornyn’s post on X.
Manus did not respond to TechCrunch’s request for comment.
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