Manus

Manus is a general purpose AI agent, meaning it is built to do tasks for you, not just chat with you. Instead of only answering questions, it can plan a sequence of steps, use tools, and produce finished outputs such as a report, a spreadsheet, a set of slides, or even a simple website. The company describes Manus as an “action engine” that helps turn ideas into delivered results.

Manus has a few product “surfaces” and packaged capabilities. It offers a web app plus mobile and Windows apps, and it highlights workflows such as creating slides, building websites, developing apps, data cleaning and structuring, writing professional emails, translation, and automations like calendar related reminders. It also promotes add ons like a browser operator, research mode, email workflows, and Slack integration.

Its most important product is the core Manus AI agent subscription, which runs tasks on your behalf using its own virtual computer environment and tool access. In practice, this is the “one product” behind all the different use cases you see on the website, because the agent is the part that breaks a goal into steps and then executes those steps to deliver something you can use. Manus publicly said it will keep selling and operating this subscription through its own app and website even after joining Meta, while continuing to operate from Singapore. 

A simple example: imagine you need a short presentation for school about renewable energy. You tell Manus your topic, how many slides you want, and the audience. Manus can research key points, draft a slide outline, write slide text, and produce a ready to present deck. This is similar to the “Create slides” style workflow Manus showcases, and business reporting has also described Manus doing creative work like slide making in addition to research and coding.

Manus competes in the fast growing “agent” space. The closest competitors are large AI assistants that are adding more agent behavior, especially OpenAI ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and also other strong models and systems that users compare against, such as DeepSeek. Manus even markets direct comparisons like “vs ChatGPT,” which reflects that it is positioning itself against mainstream assistants, not only niche automation tools.

The company’s background is closely tied to Butterfly Effect, a team founded by Chinese entrepreneurs that built globally oriented AI products and later launched Manus in 2025, then moved operations to Singapore as cross border tech scrutiny increased. In late December 2025, Meta announced it had acquired Manus, and in early January 2026 reporting said Chinese authorities were reviewing the deal with attention on whether moving staff and technology to Singapore before the sale could trigger Chinese export control requirements.

The main founders commonly reported in recent coverage are Xiao Hong (肖弘), Ji Yichao (季逸超), and Zhang Tao (张涛). Xiao Hong is often described as the CEO and a key founder, while Ji Yichao is described as a cofounder and chief scientist, and Zhang Tao is described as a cofounder who led product work.