Meta acquires AI startup Manus in a landmark deal to supercharge its…

Team S · 2026-01-02T10:39:29.000Z

Tech giant Meta Platforms Inc., the parent company of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has announced the acquisition of Manus, a Singapore-based artificial intelligence startup known for its general-purpose autonomous AI agents, as part of its ongoing push to accelerate the development and deployment of advanced AI capabilities across its consumer and business products. Financial terms of the deal were not officially disclosed by Meta, but multiple reports from major news outlets estimate the acquisition value at more than $2 billion, making it one of the company’s most significant AI plays in recent years. Founded in 2022 under the parent company Butterfly Effect and later relocating its headquarters to Singapore in mid-2025 amid global tech and geopolitical tensions, Manus quickly made a name for itself by launching what it described as a general-purpose AI agent capable of independently executing complex tasks — such as research, coding, data analysis and workflow automation — with minimal human prompting. This class of “agentic AI” represents a shift from conventional chatbots to autonomous AI systems designed to plan, iterate and complete workflows. Meta said the acquisition will enable it to scale Manus’s technology across its ecosystem, including integration into Meta AI and other platforms, while still allowing Manus to continue operating and selling its subscription service independently from its Singapore base. The company confirmed that all Chinese ownership interests in Manus AI will be severed following the transaction, and services and operations linked to China will be discontinued. Manus’s autonomous agents had achieved rapid adoption and commercial traction, with reports indicating the company surpassed $100 million in annual recurring revenue just eight months after launch, supported by millions of users and businesses worldwide. Its technology has been noted for operating dedicated cloud-based virtual machines and handling multi-step tasks autonomously, a capability that Meta sees as critical to advancing its vision of AI systems that not only converse but act on users’ behalf. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has made expanding the company’s AI capabilities a central priority amid intense competition with rivals such as Google and OpenAI, alongside significant internal investments — including a separate major funding commitment in the AI data company Scale AI earlier in 2025. Integrating Manus’s technology and talent is part of this broader strategy to accelerate innovation in autonomous agents and embed them deeply across Meta’s suite of products. Manus CEO Xiao Hong highlighted that joining Meta will allow the startup to “build on a stronger, more sustainable foundation without changing how Manus works or how decisions are made,” emphasizing continuity for the company’s existing products and customers. #ArtificialIntelligence #AI #Meta #Manus #TechAcquisition #AIAgents #MachineIntelligence #Innovation #TechNews #AIIntegration #MetaAI #GeneralPurposeAI #AutonomousSystems #TechEcosystem

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Meta acquires AI startup Manus in a landmark deal to supercharge its… | Newnex