Chinese Regime Blocks Meta’s Planned Acquisition of AI Startup Manus

The Chinese communist regime’s economic planning agency said on April 27 that it had blocked foreign investment in Meta’s proposed acquisition of AI startup Manus.

The National Development and Reform Commission said it had “made a decision to prohibit foreign investment in the Manus project” and ordered the parties involved to withdraw the transaction.

The decision was made by the commission’s Office of the Working Mechanism for Security Review of Foreign Investment in accordance with the Chinese laws and regulations, the statement said. No further explanation for the decision was given.

The announcement was made less than three weeks before U.S. President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet with Chinese regime leader Xi Jinping in Beijing in May, a trip that the White House confirmed last month.

“I’m pleased to announce that President Trump’s meeting and long-awaited meeting with President Xi in China will now take place in Beijing on May 14th and 15th,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a March 25 briefing.

The blocked acquisition is related to a deal that Meta announced on Dec. 29, 2025. The company had said it planned to bring Manus into the company as part of its push into autonomous AI agents, software designed to carry out multi-step tasks independently rather than respond to single prompts.

Meta said at the time that Manus would continue operating its service and selling subscriptions while its technology and personnel were integrated into Meta’s broader artificial intelligence ecosystem, including Meta AI.

Financial terms were not disclosed.

A Meta spokesperson told The Epoch Times on April 27 that the “transaction complied fully with applicable law,” adding that the company anticipates “an appropriate resolution to the inquiry.”

Manus, which has Chinese roots and operations in Singapore, at the time presented the Meta agreement as validation of its work in autonomous agents.

“The news is out, and it’s big: Manus is joining Meta,” the company said in a Dec. 29, 2025, statement. “This announcement is more than just a headline—it’s validation of our pioneering work with general AI agents.”

The company said it had served millions of users and businesses globally, processed more than 147 trillion tokens, and created more than 80 million virtual computers.

Xiao Hong, founder and chief executive of Manus, said at the time that the agreement would provide scale while preserving the company’s operational direction.

“Joining Meta allows us to build on a stronger, more sustainable foundation without changing how Manus works or how decisions are made,” Xiao said on Dec. 29, 2025.

Meta similarly had indicated that Manus would remain active as a product while being integrated into broader consumer and enterprise offerings.

The Epoch Times reached out to Manus for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.