China has barred two co-founders of AI startup Manus — CEO Xiao Hong and Chief Scientist Ji Yichao — from leaving the country as part of an investigation into Meta’s reported $2 billion acquisition of the company. The travel restriction, reported on March 25, signals Beijing’s increasing willingness to intervene in cross-border AI deals that could transfer Chinese AI talent and technology to American companies.
Manus developed autonomous AI agent technology that attracted Meta’s interest as the company expands its AI capabilities for its social media platforms and metaverse initiatives. Mark Zuckerberg reportedly pursued the acquisition to acquire both the technology and the research team behind it. The deal structure reportedly included provisions for the founders and key researchers to relocate to Meta’s offices in the United States.
China’s intervention reflects escalating tensions over AI talent flows between the two countries. While US export controls restrict hardware flowing to China, Beijing is increasingly focused on preventing the reverse: Chinese AI researchers and entrepreneurs leaving for American companies. The Manus case establishes a precedent that Chinese authorities will use travel restrictions to block acquisitions that would relocate AI expertise abroad.
For the global AI industry, the incident adds a new dimension to US-China technology competition. Previous friction centered on chip exports and model access. The Manus case introduces personnel mobility as a contested domain — one where neither country has clear legal frameworks and both have strong incentives to act unilaterally. AI researchers with dual US-China exposure now face the possibility that their career mobility is subject to geopolitical approval.
Meta has not publicly commented on the status of the acquisition. If the deal collapses due to Chinese government intervention, it would be the most significant blocked AI transaction since the US blocked the Broadcom-Qualcomm merger in 2018, though the mechanism — exit controls rather than investment review — is novel. The outcome will influence how future cross-border AI acquisitions are structured, particularly those involving Chinese AI companies with founders who are Chinese nationals.
