Meta May Withdraw $2.5 Billion Acquisition of AI Startup Manus

According to The Wall Street Journal, Meta is preparing to unwind its acquisition of AI startup Manus. If Meta proceeds with unwinding the deal, several of Manus’s former Asian investors—including Tencent, Sequoia China, and ZhenFund—plan to cooperate. Additionally, both companies are required to terminate the transaction and fully restore Manus’s assets in China to their pre-acquisition status, including retrieving any data or technology previously transferred to Meta. Manus is a China-related startup headquartered in Singapore, focused on developing AI agents. Meta completed the $2.5 billion acquisition last December and has rapidly integrated the related technologies into its own systems. Should the deal ultimately be unwound, both parties will need to separate the already-integrated technologies and systems. Earlier reports indicated that China banned the transaction on April 27 on national security grounds.