Meta’s Year-End Power Move: Acquires AI Startup Manus to Cap Aggressive Expansion

Meta seals its AI shopping spree with a strategic acquisition—snapping up intelligent agent specialist Manus just before the calendar flips.

The Acquisition That Signals Intent

This isn't just another corporate purchase. It's a statement. Meta's aggressive push into artificial intelligence throughout the year culminates with this deal, adding Manus's specialized agent technology directly into its ecosystem. The move consolidates talent and IP, positioning Meta to challenge rivals not just in social networking, but in the next frontier of automated, intelligent systems.

Why This Deal Matters Now

Timing is everything. Closing a major AI acquisition as the year ends sends a clear signal to markets and competitors: Meta isn't slowing down. It doubles down on its AI bets, integrating cutting-edge agent capabilities that could redefine user interaction across its platforms—from Facebook and Instagram to its ambitious metaverse projects.

The Financial Fine Print (And the Jab)

While the exact price tag remains undisclosed, the deal undoubtedly involves a hefty sum of investor cash—the kind of move that makes Wall Street analysts nod sagely before quietly wondering if this is genuine innovation or just expensive FOMO in a suit. After all, in tech, acquiring innovation is often cheaper than building it, until it isn't.

One thing's certain: Meta enters the new year armed with fresh AI firepower, making its next move in the high-stakes tech chessboard one to watch closely.

Partnership reinforces Manus’s role as the execution layer

Manus said it believes in the potential of autonomous agents, and this development reinforces its role as an execution layer. The development also enables advanced AI capabilities to be transformed into scalable, reliable systems that can perform end-to-end tasks in the real world.

Additionally, Manus has developed one of the leading autonomous general-purpose agents that can independently execute complex tasks, such as data analysis, coding, and market research. The company stated that it has already served more than 147 trillion tokens and created over 80 million VIRTUAL machines, with plans to scale these services to more businesses.

“Joining Meta allows us to build on a stronger, more sustainable foundation without changing how Manus works or how decisions are made.”

–Xiao Hong, CEO at Manus

Meanwhile, Manus said its solution is driving value for millions of global users, with plans to expand subscriptions to the billions of users and millions of businesses on the Meta platform. However, its priority is ensuring that this change will not disrupt customer services through its official app or website. 

Meta extends specialized AI startup acquisitions

Meta’s acquisition of Manus aligns with its broader strategy of acquiring specialized AI startups to accelerate its AI business. The acquisition strategy also includes the development of its open-source Llama LLMs (large language models). 

In June, Meta invested approximately $14.3 billion in AI startup Scale AI. The deal brought the startup’s founder and CEO, Alexandr Wang, onto Meta’s executive team. Meta also said that Manus employees will join its teams as the company continues to aggressively poach AI talent from startups and major rivals, such as Google and OpenAI.

The tech firm further acquired AI-wearables startup Limitless earlier this month as it seeks to expand its AI device business. Limitless develops a small, AI-powered pendant that records conversations and generates summaries. The CEO of Limitless, Dan Siroker, said that this acquisition helps bring personal superintelligence to everyone. 

“We share this vision and we’ll be joining Meta to help bring our shared vision to life.”  

–Dan Siroker, CEO of Limitless

Meta’s Ray-Ban smartglasses have also been a surprise hit, as the world of AI wearables has slowly grown this year. However, no single company has been able to develop a standout product. Several wearables are available that are similar to Limitless products.

Meanwhile, Plaud comes in a small pill or card shape that can be clipped on or worn around the wrist or neck. Friend also offers a pendant-style device, while Bee, which is worn as a wristband, was bought by Amazon. The e-commerce giant also runs AI through its Alexa+ Echo Speakers, while Google’s Pixel 10 phones have integrated the Gemini assistant.

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