The least surprising chapter of the Manus story is what’s happening right now The U.S. and China are locked in an intense competition to dominate the AI landscape, with Beijing pouring billions into domestic projects while its top talent increasingly migrates to American firms. Amid this rivalry, Manus — a once-prominent Chinese AI startup — quietly shifted its operations to Singapore and sold itself to Meta for $2 billion, a move that has sparked significant scrutiny from Chinese authorities. Manus had already established itself as a major player, boasting millions of users and over $100 million in annual recurring revenue by late 2025. Its decision to pivot to Singapore, however, was far from incidental. The company relocated its headquarters and core team from Beijing, restructured its ownership, and actively distanced itself from Chinese regulatory oversight. Meta’s acquisition of Manus, announced in early 2026, marked a dramatic shift, with the U.S. tech giant vowing to sever ties with Manus’s Chinese investors and shut down its operations in China. This move did not go unnoticed. In Beijing, the situation has been met with strong opposition. Chinese officials have long viewed the exodus of AI startups to foreign markets as a betrayal of national interests, using the phrase “selling young crops” to describe companies that leave before reaching maturity, taking their intellectual property and talent with them. The Chinese government has historically taken a hard line against such actions, as seen in the case of Jack Ma’s Ant Group, whose 2020 IPO was abruptly halted after regulatory scrutiny, leading to a $2.8 billion fine and the dismantling of China’s tech sector.#us #china #meta #manus #national_development_and_reform_commission
