(Yicai) Dec. 30 -- Meta Platforms said it will buy Manus, a leading Chinese general-purpose artificial intelligence agent developer, with the deal reportedly worth several billion dollars, which will make it the US tech giant's third-largest acquisition ever.

Manus will bring a leading AI agent to billions of people and unlock opportunities for businesses across Meta's products, the California-based company announced today. "We will continue to operate and sell the Manus service, as well as integrate it into our products."

Manus, which was founded in China before relocating to Singapore as Butterfly Effect, will continue running independently following the acquisition, it said. "Our top priority is ensuring that this change won't be disruptive for our customers. We will continue to sell and operate our product subscription service through our app and website."

Despite the exact value of the purchase not being disclosed, it will likely rank as the third-largest acquisition for Meta, behind only that of WhatsApp and Scale AI, according to a report by Latepost.

Founded in 2022, Butterfly Effect launched its flagship general-purpose AI agent Manus in March this year. The company reported that its annual recurring revenue topped USD100 million in the middle of this month.

"Since the launch, Manus has focused on building a general-purpose AI agent designed to help users tackle research, automation, and complex tasks," it said on its website. "In just a few months, our agent has processed more than 147 trillion tokens and powered the creation of over 80 million virtual computers."

"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, chief executive of Manus and founder of Butterfly Effect, who will also step in as vice president at Meta.

"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," Xiao noted.

Manus's team will help deliver general-purpose agents across Meta's consumer and business products, including Meta AI, the US firm noted, adding that it plans to scale the service to many more businesses worldwide.

According to Latepost, Manus was negotiating a new funding round at a valuation of USD2 billion before the acquisition talks began. It had previously completed four fundraisers, with investors including Sequoia China, Tencent Holdings, and other Chinese and US venture capital firms and tech entrepreneurs.

"Superintelligence has the potential to begin a new era of personal empowerment where people will have greater agency to improve the world in the directions they choose," Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said in July.

Editor: Martin Kadiev