China blocks Meta Manus acquisition

China blocked Meta’s $2 billion acquisition of Manus on Monday and ordered the companies to unwind the deal. (cnbc.com) (apnews.com) China’s National Development and Reform Commission said it was prohibiting foreign investment in Manus and told the parties to withdraw the transaction. Meta announced the takeover plan in December 2025. (cnbc.com) (forbes.com) Manus is a Singapore-based artificial intelligence startup with Chinese roots. Early versions of the product were developed by Beijing Butterfly Effect Technology, and the company later moved its headquarters and senior engineers to Singapore. (forbes.com) (cnbc.com) The company makes general-purpose AI agents, software that can carry out multistep work with limited human input. Manus said its system could handle tasks such as market research, coding and data analysis. (cnbc.com) (abcnews.com) Beijing had been reviewing the deal for months. China’s Ministry of Commerce said in January it would investigate whether the acquisition complied with rules on export controls, technology transfers and outbound investment. (english.scio.gov.cn) (cnbc.com) For Meta, Manus was part of a broader push into AI agents. CNBC reported Meta said the acquisition would help it add more automation to products including the Meta AI assistant. (cnbc.com) The deal also tested a structure some Chinese founders had used to escape tighter controls from both Beijing and Washington. Investors had called it “Singapore-washing”: moving a company to Singapore while keeping Chinese talent and technology links. (cnbc.com) (forbes.com) That route now looks narrower. CNBC reported Chinese founders and venture capital investors had treated Singapore relocation as a way to reach Western models and capital with less scrutiny from both governments. (cnbc.com) The startup had scaled quickly before the block. CNBC reported Manus launched its first general AI agent in March 2025, said it passed $100 million in annual recurring revenue in December, and raised $75 million in April 2025 in a round led by Benchmark. (cnbc.com) Meta had argued the transaction followed applicable law and said Manus would end operations in China with no continuing Chinese ownership, according to ABC News. Beijing rejected the deal anyway. (abcnews.com) (cnbc.com) Monday’s order leaves Meta without the AI agent company it agreed to buy in December. It also leaves Chinese-founded AI startups with a clearer signal that a Singapore address may not be enough to get a cross-border sale through. (cnbc.com) (apnews.com)