Meta's acquisition of Manus case escalates, China may restrict Manus executives from leaving the country

The Chinese government is taking punitive measures against individuals involved in Meta's $2 billion acquisition of Manus. Manus is an AI startup company headquartered in Singapore with a Chinese background. According to informed sources, officials from China's National Development and Reform Commission held talks with Meta and Manus executives last week to express concerns about the transaction, which may include restricting Manus executives from traveling from China to Singapore. Meta spokesperson Andy Stone stated that the transaction complies with applicable laws and the Manus team has deeply integrated into Meta. In January of this year, Chinese officials stated that they were investigating whether the transaction violated China's technology export approval regulations. US President Trump originally planned to visit China at the end of this month, but has requested that China postpone the visit. Shengyu Wang, research assistant at the Asia Society Policy Research Institute, believes that China's move may be related to trade negotiations and sends a signal to Chinese AI researchers.