Technology and Science17 September, 20263 min read
Manus Seeks $500 Million At $4 Billion Valuation After Breaking Off Meta Merger
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Manus seeks $500 million in new funding round. Valuation around $4 billion, doubling from prior round.
Manus Seeks $500M
Chinese AI startup Manus is in discussions to raise $500 million at a $4 billion valuation as it resumes independent operations, after it earlier this year had to break off a merger with Meta, The Wall Street Journal reported citing anonymous sources. TechCrunch said the potential investors in the round include IDG Capital, Boyu Capital, and battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology, alongside existing backers Tencent, HSG, and ZhenFund.
The company is also said to be considering a restructuring exercise to prepare for an IPO in Hong Kong, and TechCrunch reported that Manus told its users this August they would have to export and back up their own data because it had to delete data generated following Meta’s acquisition to “comply with regulatory requirements in specific jurisdictions.” TechCrunch also reported that Manus relocated its staff to Singapore in mid-2025 before announcing a $2 billion acquisition deal with Meta that December, and that it was pulling in annual recurring revenue of over $100 million at the time.
Meta Deal Unravels
Multiple outlets tied Manus’s fundraising push to Beijing blocking the Meta acquisition, with TechCrunch saying intensifying worries in China over losing AI talent and researchers to the West culminated in Beijing blocking the deal, citing potential violations of export controls and foreign investment rules. Asia Business Outlook described the Singapore-based startup as seeking fresh capital after its planned deal with Meta fell apart following regulatory pressure in China, and said the new funding would be Manus’ first major external round since the Meta deal was announced.
BigGo Finance added that Meta had previously agreed to acquire the startup, which had surpassed $100 million in annualized revenue, but Beijing authorities blocked the deal over concerns about technology flowing to a geopolitical rival. Silicon Republic reported that Manus went back to being an independent business in September after China blocked Meta’s acquisition of the start-up, and said the fresh $500m round is set to close “soon” after the acquisition was forcibly unwound by Chinese authorities earlier this year.
Next Steps and Stakes
As Manus prepares for a new chapter, BigGo Finance said the $500 million round would double the company's valuation to $4 billion and could pave the way for a Hong Kong listing, while also noting that Manus announced earlier this month it had resumed independent operations with the founding team continuing to lead. The Business Times said the planned US$500 million financing round is set to close soon and would make the agentic AI pioneer China’s most valuable startup in its field, and it reported that in August the company notified some users that their data would be deleted to comply with regulatory requirements.
TechCrunch said Manus makes AI products and agents “pretty similar to what companies like OpenAI, Lovable, and Replit offer,” including a chatbot and vibe-coding tools to let users build apps and websites, create designs and presentations, generate video, and more. BigGo Finance also reported that competitor Evoken—developer of AI design agent Lovart—is raising capital at a $3 billion valuation, and that Manus still faces competitive pressure from broader foundation model providers such as Moonshot's Kimi and Anthropic PBC's Claude.