Manus Parent Raises Over $500M, Operating Independently After Meta Deal Was Blocked

What happened

Butterfly Effect, the parent company of AI startup Manus, said on Thursday it has completed a funding round of more than $500 million. The round was co-led by Boyu Capital and IDG Capital, with existing investors Tencent, Sequoia China and ZhenFund participating — Manus's first major raise since the Meta acquisition was unwound.

Key facts

1. Round size: : More than $500 million, co-led by Boyu Capital and IDG Capital; Tencent, Sequoia China and ZhenFund participated.
2. Deal unwound: : In April, Beijing ordered Meta to unwind its $2 billion-plus acquisition of Manus amid tightening scrutiny of US investment in Chinese advanced-AI startups.
3. Going solo: : In August, Manus said it would resume operating as an independent company and delete some user data as part of the separation from Meta.
4. Revenue growth: : The Information reported in June that Manus's annualized revenue run rate had reached about $500 million, up from $100 million at the time of the Meta acquisition, and that the firm was considering a China-incorporated joint-venture structure paving the way for a Hong Kong listing.
5. Product: : Manus builds general-purpose AI agents that autonomously handle tasks such as research and automation with minimal human input.