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Chinese AI startup Manus, which earlier this year had to break off a merger with Meta, is in discussions to raise $500 million at a $4 billion valuation now that it has resumed operations as an independent company, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing anonymous sources. Potential investors in the round include IDG Capital, Boyu Capital, and battery maker Contemporary Amperex Technology, as well as existing backers Tencent, HSG, and ZhenFund, the Journal reported. Manus is also said to be considering a restructuring exercise to prepare for an IPO in Hong Kong. Manus, which went viral following a demo of its AI agent last year, relocated its staff to Singapore in mid-2025 before announcing a $2 billion acquisition deal with Meta that December. The startup was said to be pulling in annual recurring revenue of over $100 million at the time. However, intensifying worries in China over losing AI talent and researchers to the West culminated in Beijing blocking the deal, citing potential violations of export controls and foreign investment rules. Manus has since been untangling itself from the American social media giant, and its early investors and backers have reportedly helped the company buy back its shares at a valuation of about $2 billion. As part of its separation from Meta, the company told its users this August that they would have to export and back up their own data because it had to delete data generated following Meta’s acquisition to “comply with regulatory requirements in specific jurisdictions.” The company this month said it has resumed independent operations, and that its founding team will continue to lead it. Manus makes AI products and agents that are pretty similar to what companies like OpenAI, Lovable, and Replit offer. It offers a chatbot and vibe-coding tools to let users build apps and websites, create designs and presentations, generate video, and more. Manus did not immediately return a request for comment.
document fetched 2026-09-19 02:57 · canonical https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/18/manus-seeks-4b-valuation-in-new-500m-fundraise-as-it-resumes-independent-ops