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Meta says it is acquiring the Chinese-founded AI firm Manus as it looks to boost the capabilities of its tech.<\/p>\n
Bloomberg analysts and The Wall Street Journal suggested the purchase could be worth more than $2bn (\u00a31.48bn).<\/p>\n
Meta said the deal would help improve its own AI by giving people access to “agents” – tools which can do complex things with minimal user interaction such as planning trips or making presentations.<\/p>\n
“Manus’s exceptional talent will join Meta’s team to deliver general-purpose agents across our consumer and business products, including Meta AI,” it said in a blog post.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Barton Crockett, analyst at Rosenblatt Securities, told Reuters it was a “natural fit” for Meta, which extended into boss Mark Zuckerberg’s “vision of personal AI” using agents.<\/p>\n
Based in Singapore after relocating from China, Manus has sought to set itself apart from rival AI developers with what it claims can be a “truly autonomous” agent.<\/p>\n
Unlike many chatbots which need to be repeatedly asked for things before a user can get their desired response, Manus says its service can plan, execute and complete tasks independently in accordance with instructions.<\/p>\n
It forms part of the company’s mission to “extend human reach” with general-purpose agents that can aid, rather than replace, human work.<\/p>\n
The company said its acquisition by Meta was “validation” of its efforts.<\/p>\n
“Joining Meta allows us to build on a stronger, more sustainable foundation without changing how Manus works or how decisions are made,” said Xiao Hong, its chief executive and one of its Chinese founders, in a blog post<\/a>.<\/p>\n “We’re excited about what the future holds with Meta and Manus working together and we will continue to iterate the product and serve users that have defined Manus from the beginning.”<\/p>\n Meta said as part of its deal<\/a> it would continue to operate and sell Manus’ AI service.<\/p>\n It marks yet another high-profile move by the Silicon Valley tech giant to cement its presence in the sector through deals with rising start-ups.<\/p>\n In June the company spent $14bn to buy 49% of Scale AI and secured its boss to take a lead role in Meta’s development of the tech.<\/p>\n This came amid a wider increase in spending by Zuckerberg on the company’s AI strategy, as well as reportedly luring talent from rivals like OpenAI<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n