According to Odaily Odaily, Meta's acquisition of AI application Manus AI is valued at approximately $2.5 billion, including retention incentives for key employees.
The report states that Manus AI completed a $75 million Series B funding round led by Benchmark in May of this year, valuing the company at approximately $500 million at the time. This acquisition is seen as another example of the AI industry's rapid revaluation of its exit point, driven primarily by the high revenue growth achieved by related products in the short term.
Public information shows that Manus AI focuses on general-purpose AI agents capable of performing various real-world tasks such as market research, coding, data analysis, and resume screening, positioning itself beyond traditional chatbots or workflow tools. The company provides services to enterprise clients on a subscription basis and claims to have achieved over $100 million in annual recurring revenue within months of its product launch.
This transaction has also sparked some controversy. Manus AI's early team had ties to China, but the company is headquartered in Singapore, and its approximately 100 Chinese employees have since relocated. Axios points out that this will be Meta's first significant move in the enterprise AI agent field, potentially helping it narrow the gap with Salesforce, Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI.
However, the market is also paying attention to Meta's past controversies regarding data compliance and privacy, and it remains to be seen whether enterprise clients will be willing to use it as a core AI service provider. (Axios)
