- Chinese regulators have ordered Meta to fully unwind its $2 billion acquisition of AI startup Manus.
- The National Development and Reform Commission will ban all foreign investment in Manus and mandated the reversal of the December 2025 deal.
- The startup’s co-founders were barred from leaving China during the intense regulatory probe, which began in January 2026.
- Manus had already relocated from China to Singapore and moved about 100 employees into Meta‘s offices there.
China has blocked Meta‘s strategic push into advanced Artificial Intelligence, forcing the tech giant to undo its $2 billion purchase of startup Manus after a months-long investigation. The National Development and Reform Commission officially prohibited the foreign acquisition on Monday, according to a statement, demanding the parties withdraw from the transaction entirely.
The commission’s involvement highlights Beijing’s acute focus on controlling strategic AI assets. Consequently, this marks a significant setback for Meta‘s ambitions to compete with leaders like OpenAI.
Regulatory pressure had been mounting since Meta announced the deal in late December 2025. Chinese authorities launched a formal probe in January 2026, summoning co-founders Xiao Hong and Ji Yichao to Beijing and later barring them from leaving the country.
However, Manus, which develops “truly autonomous” AI agents, had already begun unwinding its Chinese operations months earlier. The startup closed its domestic offices and laid off dozens of employees in July 2025 before relocating its base to Singapore.
Manus‘s remarkable growth, reaching $100 million in annual revenue just eight months after launch, made it a coveted asset. Meanwhile, approximately 100 of its employees had already transitioned into Meta‘s Singapore offices by March 2026, TechCrunch reported.
This veto occurs as Meta aggressively reshapes its business around AI. The company recently confirmed plans to cut thousands of jobs and potentially spend billions on AI infrastructure.
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