Meta acquires AI startup Manus for $2 billion

Meta Platforms is acquiring Manus, a Singapore-based AI startup. According to the Wall Street Journal, Meta is reportedly paying $2 billion for the acquisition. Meta plans to keep Manus running independently while integrating its AI agents—software capable of performing tasks like screening candidates or planning—into Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, where Meta’s own chatbot is already available to its users.

The acquisition follows a period of growth for Manus, which announced in mid-December that it has signed up millions of users and is generating more than $100 million in annual recurring revenue—a metric for subscription-based business income. When Manus debuted, the startup claimed its AI agents outperformed OpenAI’s Deep Research, drawing attention in Silicon Valley. The startup’s funding history includes:

• In April, Benchmark led a $75 million funding round that assigned Manus a post-money valuation—the value of a company after external funding is added—of $500 million. Benchmark general partner Chetan Puttagunta also joined the startup’s board.
• Prior to that, Tencent, ZhenFund, and HSG (formerly Sequoia China) participated in a $10 million funding round.

The deal comes amid geopolitical scrutiny over the startup’s origins. Manus’ parent company, Butterfly Effect, was founded in Beijing in 2022 before moving to Singapore. In May, American Senator John Cornyn, a Texas Republican and member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, dragged Benchmark for its investment in the company, raising concerns back in May about American capital going to a Chinese concern. Following the acquisition, Manus will have no ties to Chinese investors and will no longer operate in China. A Meta spokesperson told Nikkei Asia that the startup will discontinue its services and operations in China. “There will be no continuing Chinese ownership interests in Manus AI following the transaction, and Manus AI will discontinue its services and operations in China,” the spokesperson said.

For Meta, the acquisition represents a shift toward acquiring AI products that are already generating revenue. This comes as investors have grown increasingly concerned about Meta’s $60 billion infrastructure spending, making revenue-generating AI products a key focus for the company’s future strategy.

Why it matters

For Zuckerberg, who has staked Meta’s future on AI, Manus represents an AI product that is actually making money. This offers a potential counter-narrative to investor concerns over Meta’s $60 billion infrastructure spending spree.