China's block of Meta-Manus deal spooks entrepreneurs and investors

Beijing willing to wield long regulatory arm to protect technology deemed Chinese

It remains unclear how Meta's $2 billion purchase of Manus can be rolled back after Beijing's national security review of the deal. (Nikkei montage/Source photos by Reuters and Getty Images)

HONG KONG/PALO ALTO, California -- China's move to block Meta's $2 billion acquisition of Chinese-founded AI startup Manus will have a chilling effect not only on China-born entrepreneurs but on cross-border, technology-intensive deals, analysts say.