On Thursday, Butterfly Effect, the parent company of China’s AI lab Manus, posted on WeChat that the company has raised over $500 million. This is Manus’s first funding round following Meta’s forced cancellation of its $2 billion acquisition attempt.
Boyu Capital and IDG Capital led this funding round, with existing shareholders including Tencent, HSG (formerly Sequoia China), and ZhenFund also participating. The AI company stated that it will continue to recruit talent both domestically and internationally.
Manus did not disclose its valuation, but last month there were reports that the company was in talks with investors for a $500 million funding round at a $4 billion valuation.
Manus gained popularity last year due to a demonstration of its AI agent. In mid-2025, the company relocated its employees to Singapore, followed by an announcement in December of that year of a $2 billion acquisition deal with Meta. At the time, reports indicated that the startup’s annual recurring revenue exceeded $100 million.
In April, Chinese regulators required the AI startup to cancel the transaction due to growing concerns in China about the flow of AI talent and researchers to the West.
According to reports, Manus resumed independent operations in August following the Meta transaction and stated that, as part of the split, the company was required to delete certain user data. The reports also indicated that the company is considering an IPO in Hong Kong.
Manus did not respond to TechCrunch's request for comment on its valuation.
Manus produces AI products and agents similar to those offered by companies like Cursor, Lovable, and Replit. It provides chatbots and vibe-coding tools that help users build applications and websites, create designs and presentations, generate videos, and more.
The company recently launched Manus 2.0, which features a new architecture, new products, and enhanced capabilities built on a new harness. The company also released Cue, a standalone app that provides individual AI agents with dedicated email addresses, phone numbers, digital wallets, and computers. The app enables agents to communicate with each other, perform tasks across services, and make payments within user-defined limits.