China Blocks Meta's $2 Billion Takeover of AI Startup Manus 21
China has blocked Meta's planned $2 billion acquisition of AI startup Manus, ordering the deal withdrawn after months of scrutiny from both Beijing and Washington. "The decision to prohibit foreign investment in Manus was made in accordance with laws and regulations," reports CNBC, citing the National Development and Reform Commission. "It added that it has asked the parties involved to withdraw the acquisition transaction." From the report: The deal had attracted scrutiny from both China and Washington, as lawmakers in the U.S. have prohibited American investors from backing Chinese AI companies directly. Meanwhile, Beijing has increased efforts to discourage Chinese AI founders from moving business offshore. The Chinese government's intervention in the transaction drew alarm among tech founders and venture capitalists in the country who were hoping to take advantage of the so-called Singapore-washing model, where companies relocate from China to the city-state to avoid scrutiny from Beijing and Washington.
Manus was founded in China before relocating to Singapore. The company develops general purpose AI agents and launched its first general AI agent in March last year, which can execute complex tasks such as market research, coding and data analysis. The release saw the startup lauded as the next DeepSeek. Manus said it had passed $100 million in annual recurring revenue, or ARR, in December, eight months on from launching a product, which it claimed made it the fastest startup in the world at the time to hit the milestone from $0. The company raised $75 million in a round led by U.S. VC Benchmark in April last year.
Manus was founded in China before relocating to Singapore. The company develops general purpose AI agents and launched its first general AI agent in March last year, which can execute complex tasks such as market research, coding and data analysis. The release saw the startup lauded as the next DeepSeek. Manus said it had passed $100 million in annual recurring revenue, or ARR, in December, eight months on from launching a product, which it claimed made it the fastest startup in the world at the time to hit the milestone from $0. The company raised $75 million in a round led by U.S. VC Benchmark in April last year.
Now what will happen to Manus? (Score:5, Funny)
Re: Now what will happen to Manus? (Score:2)
Manus, the hands of fate have intervened.
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Ask Torgo.
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https://mst3k.fandom.com/wiki/... [fandom.com]
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China stops pretending (Score:3, Insightful)
They can only enforce this by taking people hostage in China, either the employees themselves or their family ... those are the true rules and regulation of China indeed.
Re:China stops pretending (Score:4, Informative)
the founders (and ceo) are chinese nationals, have been long barred from leaving china because of this deal, it's mostly chinese capital and it's a chinese company so it falls squarely on chinese jurisdiction. chinese law allows the government to block transfers or technology exports that carry strategic or security risk to the nation. there is no need for any bombastic coercion, this is just the rule of law.
meta (no less) taking over obviously is a security risk, so this is actually a sensible move given the context and far less intrusive than the hysterical and often nonsensical moves routinely made by the us in the opposite direction, but don't really mind manus, 2 billion is spare cash and this isn't about them at all. it's about setting the record straight and sending a clear signal that the ruse of relocating to singapore to infiltrate/exfiltrate tech companies is a no go. nice try but suck it up, buttercup, and find another way.
unlike in the west, the chinese government (and russia's, btw) controls its oligarchs, not vice-versa, which is why they're not slipping into decadence (again, unlike the west) and can actually manage their national interests and long term strategy for real, without constant histrionism and boasting about it in public while selling their country to said oligarchs in back room deals to dig the hole even deeper.
Re: China stops pretending (Score:2)
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And it sounds like you're saying that a corrupt dictatorship deciding who gets to be an "oligarch" is a good thing. I'd rather that people become wealthy through successfully building something than Party loyalty.
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The Chinese investors took Meta's money.
China has no rights to Chinese nationals abroad. The engineers are free to never return to China, they don't need China's approval for that. I suspect most of them never will regardless of what China does to the founders.
China will learn from this, get out while you can.
somebody didnt make the proper kickbacks err (Score:3, Funny)
good (Score:2)
Obviously (Score:3)
What, they don't want a US company known to a) pander to the current regime, and b) scan *everything* for information they can sell elsewhere (including the US gov't)?