Meta to Acquire AI Startup Manus in $2bn–$3bn Deal

Meta is preparing to acquire Manus, a Chinese-founded artificial intelligence startup, as it steps up efforts to build stronger AI features across its consumer apps and business products.

The deal is reported to be valued at between $2 billion and $3 billion, though the official financial terms have not been made public.

The acquisition signals Meta’s push to compete more aggressively in the global AI race and to focus on AI products that can generate real revenue.

What We Know About Manus

Manus, now headquartered in Singapore, gained major attention earlier this year after it went viral on X with a product it described as the world’s first “general AI agent.”

Unlike regular chatbots that mainly respond to prompts, Manus claimed its system can make decisions and carry out tasks with minimal guidance from users. The company has been widely discussed in tech circles, with some describing it as a fast-rising AI player coming out of China.

Manus has also said its AI agent performs better than some competing research tools in certain tasks and has mentioned a strategic partnership with Alibaba tied to AI model development.

How Meta Plans to Use It

Meta is expected to operate and commercialise Manus’ services while integrating its AI agent into Meta’s wider ecosystem. The company plans to keep Manus running as its own product, even while its technology is built into Meta’s platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp, where Meta AI is already available.

For Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who has positioned AI as a core part of the company’s long-term future, the acquisition reflects a growing interest in AI platforms that already show strong market traction.

Why the Deal Matters

Manus has reportedly built a large user base and crossed $100 million in annual recurring revenue, placing it among the few AI startups that have reached significant commercial scale. Analysts say this revenue strength likely influenced Meta’s decision to pursue the company at a multibillion-dollar valuation.

The startup is backed by its parent company, Beijing Butterfly Effect Technology, and earlier this year raised $75 million at a valuation of about $500 million. The funding round reportedly included major investors such as Benchmark, HSG (formerly Sequoia Capital China), ZhenFund, and Tencent.

This move adds to a string of major AI investments by Meta. Earlier this year, the company invested $14.3 billion in Scale AI in a deal that valued the data-labelling firm at $29 billion and strengthened Meta’s relationship with Scale AI CEO Alexandr Wang.

Meta has also been linked to discussions around raising significant private funding to expand its AI infrastructure, as competition in AI computing and model development continues to intensify worldwide.