China’s NDRC Orders Meta To Unwind $2 Billion Manus AI Deal

China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) has blocked Meta’s $2 billion acquisition of the Singapore-based AI-agent startup Manus and ordered the parties to unwind the deal, according to multiple reports.

The BBC said the prohibition was made by Beijing’s National Development and Reform Commission and required “the parties involved to withdraw the acquisition transaction,” after Meta announced the deal in late December.

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CNBC reported that the state planner called for Meta to unwind the acquisition and said the decision to prohibit foreign investment in Manus was made “in accordance with laws and regulations,” adding that it “asked the parties involved to withdraw the acquisition transaction.”

NPR described the move as a ban on “a foreign acquisition of Manus” and said the decision was made by the commission’s Office of the Working Mechanism for Security Review of Foreign Investment.

The BBC also reported that Meta said the transaction “complied fully with applicable law” and that it anticipated “an appropriate resolution to the inquiry.”

Meta’s position was echoed by CNBC, which quoted a Meta spokesperson saying the transaction “complied fully with applicable law” and that it anticipated “an appropriate resolution to the inquiry.”

The decision came after Chinese authorities said they were looking into the deal earlier this year, with NPR noting that the commission “did not elaborate on the reasons for the ban.”

The block followed months of scrutiny that began earlier in the year, with Chinese regulators examining whether the acquisition complied with export controls, technology transfers and outbound investment rules.

The BBC said it came “after months of scrutiny” over Meta’s acquisition of Manus by Chinese regulators, and it noted that Manus had been founded and previously based in China before relocating to Singapore.

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CNBC reported that in January China’s Ministry of Commerce said it would conduct an assessment and investigation into how the acquisition complied with laws and regulations concerning export controls, technology import and export, and overseas investment.

NPR said the announcement came after Chinese authorities said they were looking into the deal earlier this year, and it described the decision as being made under Chinese laws and regulations by the NDRC’s security review mechanism.

Caixin Global added that the deal, which Meta completed in late December, drew official regulatory attention earlier this year and that on Jan. 8 China’s commerce ministry spokesperson He Yadong said the ministry and other departments would evaluate compliance with laws regarding export controls, technology transfers and outbound investment.

CNN tied the timing to geopolitics, saying the move came “just weeks ahead of US President Donald Trump’s much anticipated summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing,” and it described the probe as Beijing launching “in January.”

The Decoder similarly described multiple regulators reviewing the deal since January, including the NDRC, the commerce ministry, and China’s antitrust watchdog, and it said the deal was announced in December and closed earlier this year.

Meta and Chinese regulators both framed the dispute in legal and political terms, while US-China technology tensions hovered over the background.

The BBC reported that Meta’s spokesperson told the BBC “the transaction complied fully with applicable law” and that it would “anticipate an appropriate resolution to the inquiry.”

CNBC likewise quoted Meta saying the transaction “complied fully with applicable law” and that it anticipated “an appropriate resolution to the inquiry.”

On the Chinese side, the NDRC’s statement was described by NPR as a one-line order that it was “prohibiting a foreign acquisition of Manus” and requiring “all the parties to withdraw from the deal.”

CNBC said the decision was made “in accordance with laws and regulations,” and it added that the state planner had asked the parties to withdraw the acquisition transaction.

The BBC also connected the case to broader tech tensions, saying the White House said on Friday it would work more closely with US AI firms to combat “industrial-scale campaigns” to steal advances in the technology, and it quoted a response from a representative of China’s US embassy in Washington DC that included “the unjustified suppression of Chinese companies by the US.”

CNN described Beijing’s concerns as technology loss to the United States amid an intensifying tech war, and it said the move reflected worries that Beijing could lose key technology to the United States.

While the core action—China ordering Meta to unwind the Manus acquisition—was consistent across outlets, the emphasis and framing differed, especially around what Manus is, why the deal mattered, and what the decision signals.

BBC focused on the regulatory mechanism and the deal’s stated purpose, saying Meta announced in late December that the deal “would see Manus' agents used to boost to its own AI across its platforms,” and it described Manus as claiming it can be “truly autonomous.”

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CNBC emphasized the chilling effect on China’s AI startup scene and described Beijing’s intervention as discouraging Chinese AI founders from moving business offshore, including the “Singapore-washing model.”

CNN framed the decision as a reflection of Beijing’s concern that it could lose key technology to the United States amid an intensifying tech war, and it described the move as coming “just weeks ahead of US President Donald Trump’s much anticipated summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing.”

NPR highlighted the security review process and described the NDRC’s decision as made by the commission’s Office of the Working Mechanism for Security Review of Foreign Investment, while also noting that Meta said there would be “no continuing Chinese ownership interests in Manus.”

The Decoder added a different angle by describing the unwinding as complicated because Meta had already integrated the technology into its own products, and it said “a resale or return to existing investors is seen as the most likely path forward.”

Caixin Global, meanwhile, foregrounded legal compliance questions and reported that on Jan. 8 He Yadong said the evaluation would cover export controls, technology transfers and outbound investment, and it also described the deal as structured as an “acqui-hire.”

The reports also differed in how they described the practical and strategic stakes of reversing the deal, particularly because Meta had already integrated Manus into its systems and because the acquisition had already been completed.

“China blocks Meta's $2bn acquisition of AI start-up Manus Facebook-owner Meta's acquisition of AI start-up Manus has been blocked by Chinese regulators”

BBC

CNN said that “Unwinding the deal, however, will be complicated in practice,” and it explained that “Soon after announcing the acquisition in late December, Meta had integrated Manus into its internal systems and executives of the startup had joined the American tech giant.”

Caixin Global

NPR similarly said Meta announced in December that it was acquiring Manus and that Manus’s “website says the company ‘is now part of Meta,’ indicating that the deal had already been completed,” while Meta said on Monday that the Manus transaction “complied fully with applicable law.”

The Decoder described the reversal as complicated since Meta had already integrated the technology into its own products, and it said “a resale or return to existing investors is seen as the most likely path forward.”

CNBC reported that the decision drew scrutiny from both China and Washington, noting that lawmakers in the U.S. have prohibited American investors from backing Chinese AI companies directly, and it said Beijing increased efforts to discourage Chinese AI founders from moving business offshore.

NPR quoted Lian Jye Su, chief analyst at Omdia, saying “China is showing the world that it is willing to play hardball when it comes to AI talents and capabilities,” and it added that it is “strongly indicative of what Chinese authorities may do going forward regarding acquisitions involving Chinese deep-tech companies.”

Looking ahead, CNBC said Meta had anticipated “an appropriate resolution to the inquiry,” while Chen Xu told reporters that “if such an issue can be handled properly, it can help facilitate more substantive discussions in APEC,” leaving open how the dispute might play out beyond the immediate order to withdraw.