Key facts
- Butterfly Effect, the parent company of AI startup Manus, raised over $500 million in new funding.
- Boyu Capital and IDG Capital led the funding round.
- Tencent, HSG, and ZhenFund were among the existing shareholders that participated.
- Meta was ordered by Chinese authorities in April to unwind its $2 billion acquisition of Manus.
- Manus offers AI products and agents for app development, design, and video generation.
- The company recently launched Manus 2.0 and the Cue app for personal AI agents.
Manus' parent company, Butterfly Effect, has raised more than $500 million in fresh funding, the company announced Thursday. This comes after Chinese authorities ordered the U.S. tech giant Meta to unwind its $2 billion acquisition of the AI startup in April.
Boyu Capital and IDG Capital led the funding round, with existing shareholders including Tencent, HSG (formerly known as Sequoia China), and ZhenFund also participating. Manus stated it will continue hiring both domestically and internationally.
Manus did not disclose its valuation, though reports last month indicated it was in talks to raise $500 million at a $4 billion valuation. The company, which gained viral attention for its AI agent demo last year, had relocated its staff to Singapore in mid-2025. At the time of the Meta acquisition announcement in December, Manus was reportedly generating over $100 million in annual recurring revenue.
In April, Chinese authorities mandated the unwinding of the deal due to concerns over AI talent moving to the West. Manus resumed independent operations in August following the termination of the Meta deal, and was required to delete certain user data as part of the separation. The company is reportedly considering a public listing in Hong Kong.
Manaus develops AI products and agents comparable to offerings from companies like Cursor, Lovable, and Replit. Its products include a chatbot and coding tools for app and website creation, design, presentations, and video generation. The company recently launched Manus 2.0 with a new architecture and products, including Cue, an app that provides personal AI agents with email addresses, phone numbers, digital wallets, and computers, enabling them to communicate and handle tasks across services.