Meta Acquires China Origin Start Up Manus in $8.25bn Deal, Home
Country China Objects
Probe comes amid concerns the US$2.5
billion acquisition could breach tech export controls and encourage more
start-ups to relocate offshore
China’s
Ministry of Commerce has confirmed it will review and investigate Meta
Platforms’ acquisition of AI start-up Manus, citing concerns over export
controls, technology transfers and overseas investments. The probe follows
reports that the US$2.5 billion deal could breach China’s technology export
regulations and accelerate the offshore relocation of domestic start-ups.
Commerce
Ministry spokesperson He Yadong said regulators would assess whether the
transaction complies with rules governing technology imports and exports, data
transfers and cross-border acquisitions. While Beijing supports international
business cooperation, he stressed that such deals must follow Chinese laws and
due process.
The
scrutiny is driven by worries over AI technology and talent outflows,
especially after Manus relocated from China to Singapore last summer. Although
registered in Singapore, the company developed its AI products in China, giving
authorities legal grounds to examine whether sensitive technologies were
transferred abroad.
The
deal has been welcomed by investors as a rare, high-profile exit, but has
raised alarms among policymakers and academics. Legal experts argue regulators
may investigate how, when and which technologies were moved overseas by Manus’
China-based entities. Manus gained prominence in March last year after
unveiling what it called the world’s first general AI agent, before shifting
operations to Singapore in mid-2025.
China’s
Ministry of Commerce says it will conduct a review and investigation into
Meta’s acquisition of Manus regarding export controls and technology exports,
confirming an earlier report by the Post.
Spokesperson
He Yadong said at a briefing on Thursday that the ministry would work with
other Chinese regulators to check whether the deal, announced by Meta and Manus
a week earlier, was consistent with China’s regulations of export controls,
technology imports and exports as well as external investments.
Beijing’s
intervention comes amid growing concerns about the outflow of artificial
intelligence technology and talent, following Manus’ decision to relocate from
China to Singapore last summer.
Although
Manus is officially registered in Singapore, the company developed its AI
products in China, providing legal grounds for Chinese authorities to
scrutinise the transfer of technologies abroad.
“The
Chinese government has always supported businesses to conduct mutually
beneficial cross-border operations and international technology cooperation,”
He said. “But it should be noted that the external investment, technology
exports, data exports and cross-border acquisitions by companies must comply
with Chinese laws and regulations and go through due process.”
The
Post reported on Wednesday that Chinese authorities were considering whether
Meta Platforms’ US$2.5 billion acquisition of Manus could breach technology
export controls and encourage more start-ups to relocate offshore.
Meta
and Manus did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
While
the deal has buoyed investors by offering a rare, high-profile cash exit, it
has also raised eyebrows in Beijing. Academics and lawyers have debated whether
Manus’ relocation – widely seen as a step to facilitate the transaction – may
have run afoul of China’s technology export control regime.
Manus
rose to fame in March last year after releasing what it described as the
world’s first general AI agent – software that can complete tasks on a user’s
behalf. The team initially operated in Beijing and Wuhan, but had moved to
Singapore by mid-June 2025, laying off some China-based staff and shutting down
its domestic social media accounts.
Cui
Fan, a professor at the University of International Business and Economics and
chief expert at the China Society for World Trade Organization Studies, wrote
over the weekend that regulators could intervene to determine “when, in what
manner, and which technologies were transferred abroad by Manus’ onshore
entities, including both natural persons and legal entities”.