In a move that underscores Meta's relentless push into artificial intelligence, the tech giant has snapped up Manus, a Singapore-based AI startup specializing in autonomous agents. Announced on December 29, 2025, the acquisition values Manus at over $2 billion, marking one of Meta's most significant bets on AI technology to date.
This deal not only brings in a revenue-generating product but also a talented team poised to enhance Meta's ecosystem, from Facebook and Instagram to WhatsApp.
Manus, originally founded in China before relocating to Singapore under its parent company Butterfly Effect Pte, emerged as a standout in the AI agent space in 2025.
Unlike traditional chatbots that merely respond to queries, Manus's platform builds complex sequences of actions to complete tasks autonomously - such as screening resumes, planning travel itineraries, or analyzing stock portfolios based on simple user instructions.
The startup gained traction after its viral demo earlier in the year, which showcased capabilities rivaling or surpassing those of competitors like OpenAI's tools. Backed by heavyweights including Tencent Holdings Ltd., ZhenFund, and HSG, Manus secured a funding round led by U.S. venture firm Benchmark at a near-$500 million valuation.
Impressively, it achieved an annual recurring revenue (ARR) of $125 million through a subscription model, with millions of users paying between $39 and $199 monthly for its services.
The acquisition, finalized in just about 10 days, buys out all existing investors and includes Manus's technology, leadership, and roughly 100-strong team. Deal terms remain undisclosed beyond the valuation, but Meta has committed to discontinuing Manus's operations in China and ensuring no ongoing Chinese ownership, addressing potential geopolitical concerns amid U.S.-China tech tensions.
Manus co-founder and CEO Xiao Hong will report directly to Meta's Chief Operating Officer Javier Olivan, while the team integrates under Chief AI Officer Alexandr Wang. In a post on X, Xiao expressed excitement: "The era of AI that doesn’t just talk, but acts, creates, and delivers, is only beginning. And now, we get to build it at a scale we never could have imagined."
This marks Meta's second major acqui-hire in the AI domain within the year, following its high-profile investment and recruitment from Scale AI in June 2025, where Wang himself joined Meta from the data-labeling giant. Unlike that partial stake, the Manus deal is a full acquisition, bringing immediate revenue streams and a proven product to offset Meta's massive AI expenditures - estimated at $60 billion on infrastructure alone in 2025, with CEO Mark Zuckerberg pledging an additional $600 billion over the next three years for U.S.-based AI projects.
Analysts from Bloomberg Intelligence highlight that Manus could help Meta build a subscription and API business around its AI investments, filling gaps where rivals like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and Anthropic's Claude have advanced agentic applications.
Meta plans to maintain Manus as a standalone service while weaving its agent capabilities into its core products, potentially transforming user experiences on platforms with billions of daily users.
This could enable features like automated task handling in Messenger or intelligent content curation on Instagram, positioning Meta to compete in the "agentic AI" race - where AI doesn't just converse but executes real-world actions. However, the deal may attract regulatory scrutiny due to Manus's Asian origins and the broader antitrust spotlight on Big Tech's AI consolidations.
Reactions on social media and in the tech community have been swift and largely positive. On X, users hailed it as a "big win for the future of intelligent agents," with one post noting Manus's rapid ascent from a viral demo to a billion-dollar exit in months.
Another called it Meta's "third largest acquisition ever," emphasizing the startup's explosive growth to $100M+ ARR in just eight months. Industry observers see this as a shift from hype to value-driven AI, with Manus providing Meta a tangible path to monetize its open-source Llama models.
As Zuckerberg accelerates Meta's AI ambitions - planning a new state-of-the-art model debut in spring 2026—this acquisition signals a strategic pivot toward practical, revenue-positive AI integrations. For a company often criticized for its metaverse detours, Manus could be the key to unlocking near-term returns and reasserting dominance in the evolving AI landscape. Whether it propels Meta ahead of rivals or sparks more debates on tech consolidation remains to be seen, but one thing is clear: the age of AI agents is here, and Meta is all in.
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