China's National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) blocked the acquisition of the general-purpose AI agent service Manus by the American company Meta for $2 billion in April 2026. Manus, founded in China in 2022 and relocated to Singapore, announced its return to independent operation: users must create a backup of their data by August 23, after which the service will be unavailable for one day.
What happened
The $2 billion deal between Meta and Manus was announced on December 29, 2025. In April 2026, China's NDRC blocked the acquisition. Manus published an official notice on manus.im/blog/a-note-to-our-users: the service is transitioning to independent operations. Users must download a backup of data created after December 29, 2025, by August 23, using the tool at manus.im/backup. Between August 23 and 24, data will be deleted and account access suspended. Operations will resume on August 25. Manus is completely free during the transition period, and the company promised subscription bonuses after resuming. The data deletion is related to regulatory compliance, not a data breach.
Context
Manus AI was founded in China in 2022 as a platform for general-purpose AI agents capable of performing complex multi-step tasks. The company moved its headquarters to Singapore, but Chinese regulators deemed there were sufficient grounds to intervene in the deal. The NDRC's decision operates under a mechanism similar to the US CFIUS — the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, which blocks acquisitions of American companies by foreign parties on national security grounds. In this case, the roles have reversed: Chinese regulators are blocking the purchase of a Chinese AI company by an American tech giant, reflecting a symmetrical escalation of geopolitical confrontation in the field of artificial intelligence.
Why this matters for the industry
The blocking of the $2 billion deal is a precedent-setting signal about strict geopolitical boundaries in cross-border M&A in the AI sector. Meta's strategy of monetizing AI through subscription-based AI agents has failed, demonstrating the limits of geopolitical scalability even for tech giants. For the general-purpose AI agent market, this means: the "build and sell to Big Tech" strategy for Chinese AI startups no longer works. If similar regulatory barriers become the norm, the AI agent ecosystem will fragment along geographic boundaries, complicating benchmarking and comparative research. Independent Manus without Meta's funding will face questions about scaling infrastructure and competing with the resources of corporate players.
Why this matters for users
If you use Manus, you must go to manus.im/backup by August 23 and manually download a backup of your task and settings data created after December 29, 2025. Data that is not exported will be deleted on August 23–24. Access to the service will be suspended during this period and will resume on August 25. If your production processes depend on Manus, plan a fallback for this period. API integrations may break after resumption — backward compatibility is not guaranteed. The transition period is free, providing an opportunity to test the AI agent platform without payment.
What is still unknown / limitations
Manus's statement lacks technical details: there is no information about changes to models, APIs, or infrastructure after resuming on August 25. It is unclear what alternative funding model Manus will choose after losing the $2 billion investment from Meta. The possibility of divergence — splitting into a version for the Chinese market and an international version — has not yet been confirmed. The question of whether independent Manus will have enough resources to maintain a competitive level of quality and latency remains open.
Sources
- Manus AI: official notice on the transition to independent operations and data backup
- CNBC: Manus returns as independent company after China blocks Meta deal
- India Today: Manus AI going independent after China stops Zuckerberg
Author
Look at AI, editorial team