China blocks Meta Platforms’ $2 billion acquisition of AI company Manus, tells Mark Zuckerberg: Withdraw your offer

In what can be called a major blow to Mark Zuckerberg’s AI ambitions, Chinese regulators have officially blocked Meta Platforms from acquiring AI startup Manus. This comes days after a report claimed that China has ordered its leading artificial intelligence (AI) companies to stop accepting American capital as Beijing aims to prevent sensitive AI breakthroughs from falling into US hands.

According to a report by South China Morning Post, China’s top economic planner, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), ordered both companies to cancel the transaction immediately.