AI Startup Manus Secures $500 Million Following Failed Meta Acquisition

Manus, a prominent artificial intelligence agent startup, has successfully raised more than $500 million in its first investment round since Meta Platforms was compelled to abandon its acquisition of the firm. The funding highlights continued investor confidence in the company despite the geopolitical and regulatory hurdles that previously derailed the deal.

Butterfly Effect, the parent company of Manus, announced on Thursday that the financing round was led by private equity firm Boyu Capital and venture investor IDG Capital. Existing shareholders, including Tencent, HSG, and ZhenFund, also participated in the round. While the company did not publicly disclose its post-funding valuation, Bloomberg reported last month that Manus was targeting a $4 billion valuation, which would make it the most valuable AI agent maker in China.

The successful raise suggests that investors are not deterred by Beijing’s unprecedented order blocking Meta’s $2 billion acquisition earlier this year. Chinese regulators had halted the deal, citing concerns over technology export controls, before Meta had fully integrated Manus’s team and technology into its own systems. Analysts note that the funding demonstrates resilience in the appetite for AI-agent startups, even as foundation models improve rapidly and price competition intensifies.

“The fundraising shows that the short-term fallout of the Meta case has been contained and investors are willing to back Manus as an independent company,” said Dan Wang, China director at Eurasia Group. He added that the move signals renewed confidence in the commercial potential of AI agents.

Manus, which launched in China in early 2025, had previously moved its staff to Singapore after securing backing from U.S. venture firm Benchmark. After Meta announced its acquisition in December, Chinese authorities, led by the National Development and Reform Commission, prohibited foreign investment in the project. The company had been viewed as a blueprint for Chinese startups aiming for global reach but has since become a cautionary tale of the pressures from regulators in both Beijing and Washington.

Following its split from Meta, Manus resumed independent operations and announced the launch of Manus 2.0, which features a new in-house execution system called Cascade. The company also introduced Cue, a standalone personal-agent app that allows each agent to have its own email address, phone number, and mobile wallet.

In the wake of the breakup, Meta has continued to advance its own presence in the personal AI agent market. The tech giant launched its Muse agent in early September, which is modeled on the open-source AI agent OpenClaw, as competition in the sector accelerates.