NEW YORK, December 29, 2025, 19:43 ET
- Meta said it will acquire Manus and integrate the AI agent into products including Meta AI; financial terms were not disclosed.
- Manus, a Singapore-based unit of Beijing Butterfly Effect Technology, builds software that can carry out research and automation with minimal prompts.
- Bloomberg News reported Manus had an annual revenue run rate of $125 million earlier this year from subscription sales to businesses.
Meta Platforms said on Monday it would acquire Manus, a Chinese artificial intelligence startup whose software can operate as a “digital employee” for tasks such as research and automation. https://www.reuters.com/world/china/meta-acquire-chinese-startup-manus-boost-advanced-ai-features-2025-12-29/
The deal lands as Big Tech pushes “AI agents” — programs that can carry out multi-step work with limited direction — from demonstrations into tools that people and companies will pay to use.
Meta said it will operate and sell the Manus service and integrate it into its consumer and business products, including Meta AI.
Financial terms of the deal were not released, Meta said.
Bloomberg News reported the acquisition could give Meta a faster path to paid services, because Manus sells its AI agent to businesses via subscriptions. Bloomberg reported Manus had an annual revenue run rate of $125 million earlier this year.
Manus is based in Singapore and is part of Beijing Butterfly Effect Technology Ltd Co, Reuters reported.
The startup’s general-purpose AI agent can perform tasks independently with minimal prompts — a brief instruction or question that guides an AI system’s output.
Manus launched its AI agent earlier this year and said its performance surpassed OpenAI’s DeepResearch, Reuters reported. It has promoted the product by completing dozens of tasks for users on X for free, the report said.
Alexandr Wang, who joined Meta after leading data-labeling startup Scale AI, wrote in a post on X: “Excited to announce that @ManusAI has joined Meta to help us build amazing AI products!” https://x.com/alexandr_wang/status/2005766469771223106
The Information described Manus as one of the pioneers among startups that launched general-purpose AI agents earlier this year.
Meta has been ramping up AI investments through strategic acquisitions and talent hires as competition in the sector intensifies, Reuters reported.
Earlier this year, the Facebook owner invested in Scale AI in a deal valuing the data-labeling startup at $29 billion and bringing in Wang, Reuters said.
The Manus deal adds to Meta’s push to fold advanced AI features into its platforms as it seeks new ways to monetize a costly buildout of models, computing power and AI-driven products.
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