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Is China’s Manus block a warning for other AI firms with global ambitions?

State media has cast the deal as a security concern, while stressing Beijing remains open to foreign investment

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The Manus AI agent app is displayed on mobile phones with the logo of US tech giant Meta in the app interface. Photo: Reuters
Kandy Wong
Beijing’s decision to block Meta Platforms’ proposed acquisition of artificial intelligence firm Manus should not be seen as a restriction on foreign investment, Chinese state media said, urging companies in the sector to “go global when ready” and “pursue partnerships where appropriate”.

“What stands out from Meta’s Manus deal is that the AI industry is transcending simple commercial logic,” Yuyuan Tantian, the influential social media account run by state broadcaster CCTV, said on Wednesday in a post on its WeChat page.

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“Certain countries are using mechanisms such as security reviews to expand the scope of scrutiny and blur the definition of threats, targeting the AI development of other nations.”

The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) issued the order on Monday, following a January announcement by the Ministry of Commerce that it would review the US$2 billion deal to assess compliance with regulations on export controls, technology exports and external investments.
It marks the first time China’s top economic planner has used foreign investment review provisions to unwind a major tech deal. The scrutiny came after Manus moved its core assets to Singapore last year, which may have raised concerns in Beijing that this could become a model for other Chinese AI companies, the South China Morning Post previously reported.

But Yuyuan Tantian said China was not discouraging AI firms from expanding overseas and “very much welcomes foreign investment”. The order, it added, “simply draws a clear line between compliance and non-compliance that offers clearer regulatory guidance for foreign investment”.

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“We must be on guard,” it said in the post. “Regulation, too, is meant to enable better development.”

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