Manus

0:34 Manus is a general-purpose AI agent made by Butterfly Effect, a startup founded in Beijing that moved to Singapore in mid-2025. You give it a goal ("research these 50 companies", "build a landing page") and it plans, browses and writes code on its own cloud computer, then hands back a finished file, site or report. As of Nov 6, 2026 it has a free plan with limited credits and paid Pro and Team plans billed in credits. Meta agreed to buy it for about $2 billion in Dec 2025, China ordered the deal unwound in Apr 2026, and Manus resumed independent operations in Aug 2026.

Manus suits long, many-step jobs you would rather hand off than supervise: broad research, spreadsheets, slide decks, simple apps. For tasks inside your own logged-in browser, Comet or Gemini in Chrome fit better; for coding, a dedicated agent such as Claude Code or Codex is more controllable; for cited research, Perplexity is quicker.

Quick facts

Plans and credits

Manus sells plans in credits: every task spends some, and bigger or longer tasks spend more. Its plans page, read Nov 6, 2026, lists three:

An Enterprise plan with shared credit pools is also offered through sales. Manus's page did not show plan prices in a form that could be read on Nov 6, 2026; check manus.im/pricing before buying.

Features

1:34 The agent. Manus breaks a goal into steps and carries them out in a virtual computer with a browser, a terminal and files, so it can keep working after you close the tab. TechCrunch describes uses such as screening job candidates, planning trips and analyzing stock portfolios (Dec 29, 2025).

Wide Research. A main agent splits a big job into items and hands each to its own sub-agent, running in parallel with a fresh context: ten items use ten agents, 500 use 500, per Manus's Wide Research page. It is available on Pro, with a gradual rollout to lower tiers.

0:18 Building things. Manus also makes websites and apps, designs, presentations and video. Manus 2.0 runs on a rebuilt architecture, and it launched Cue, an app that gives agents their own email addresses, phone numbers, wallets and computers (TechCrunch, Oct 8, 2026).

The Meta deal and its reversal

Meta announced it was buying Manus on Dec 29, 2025 for a reported more than $2 billion, to bring its agents into Meta AI. China opened an export-control review in Jan 2026, and on Apr 27, 2026 its National Development and Reform Commission required the parties to withdraw the deal; reports said the CEO and chief scientist were barred from leaving mainland China. Meta said the deal "complied fully with applicable law." Manus went back to running on its own in Aug 2026 and said it had to delete some user data in the split. In Oct 2026 Butterfly Effect raised over $500 million led by Boyu Capital and IDG Capital, with Tencent among existing backers (TechCrunch).

Manus vs the alternatives

• Comet: acts inside your own browser, with your logins; free, with agent tasks on paid Perplexity plans.
• Gemini in Chrome: Google's agent in Chrome, tied to Gmail, Calendar and Maps.
• ChatGPT: OpenAI's desktop app runs agents with a built-in browser and a cloud browser.
• Perplexity: faster for questions that need cited answers rather than a finished deliverable.
• Claude Code and Codex: better for real software work you need to review.

Frequently asked questions

Is Manus free? Yes, Manus has a free plan with a limited number of credits and core features as of Nov 6, 2026; Pro and Team plans add more credits, and Wide Research is on Pro.

Who owns Manus? Butterfly Effect, its Singapore-based maker, owns Manus. Meta's roughly $2 billion purchase was blocked by China in Apr 2026, and Manus has operated independently since Aug 2026.

What is Manus Wide Research? Wide Research is a Manus feature that splits a large research job across many sub-agents working in parallel, one per item, from ten to hundreds; it is offered on the Pro plan.

Is Manus Chinese? Manus was started in Beijing in 2022 and moved its headquarters to Singapore in mid-2025; Chinese regulators blocked Meta's purchase of it in Apr 2026, reportedly over concerns about losing AI talent to the West.

What can Manus do? Manus researches, browses, writes and builds on its own cloud computer: reports, spreadsheets, slide decks, websites and simple apps, delivered when the task is done.

Sources

• Plans, Manus, read Nov 6, 2026
• Wide Research, Manus, read Nov 6, 2026
• Meta just bought Manus, an AI startup everyone has been talking about, TechCrunch, Dec 29, 2025
• Meta acquires intelligent agent firm Manus, capping year of aggressive AI moves, CNBC, Dec 30, 2025
• Meta faces China probe over acquisition of AI agent startup Manus, CNBC, Jan 8, 2026
• China blocks Meta's $2B Manus deal after months-long probe, TechCrunch, Apr 27, 2026
• China's Manus raises over $500M in first funding round since split with Meta, TechCrunch, Oct 8, 2026
• Introducing Manus: The General AI Agent, Manus AI, Mar 5, 2025 (video)
• Introducing Manus 2.0, Manus AI, Sep 28, 2026 (video)