China orders Meta Manus deal reversal in a dramatic escalation of tech oversight, directing the U.S. company to unwind its $2 billion-plus acquisition of AI startup Manus. The move signals Beijing’s tougher stance on foreign investment in strategic frontier technologies.
Why China Orders Meta Manus Deal Reversal
China’s National Development and Reform Commission said foreign investment in Manus would be prohibited under existing laws and regulations, requiring the parties to withdraw the transaction.
The decision highlights Beijing’s effort to stop overseas firms from acquiring Chinese AI talent and intellectual property at a time of rising U.S.-China competition in advanced technologies.
Meta Manus Deal Faces Rare Post-Completion
China rarely orders completed corporate transactions to be reversed, making this case especially notable. The reported intervention comes weeks before a planned summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.
According to the report, China’s commerce ministry had announced an investigation into the sale in January, shortly after Meta completed the acquisition in December.
Manus Founders and Singapore Shift Under Spotlight
The report said Manus co-founders Xiao Hong and Ji Yichao were summoned to Beijing for talks with regulators in March and were later barred from leaving the country. They did not respond to requests for comment.
After a $75 million fundraising round led by Benchmark in May 2025, Manus reportedly shut its China offices in July and laid off dozens of employees. It then moved operations to Singapore without seeking Chinese regulatory approval, according to people familiar with the matter.
China Orders Meta Manus Deal Reversal Sends Wider Message
Analysts said the case could serve as a warning to startups attempting to relocate to Singapore to access foreign capital, a practice described in the report as “Singapore washing.”
Singapore University of Social Sciences lecturer Ben Chester Cheong said the move raises the compliance threshold rather than ending relocations entirely. He said companies may now need to prove genuine operational shifts, including where management, IP, R&D, and data are based.
Why Manus Mattered to Meta
Meta acquired Manus to strengthen its position in AI agents, tools designed to complete more complex tasks than standard chatbots with minimal human input.
Manus had drawn attention after presenting itself as a general AI agent framework built on top of existing Western large language models rather than developing its own foundation model.
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