🔥Meta’s Aftermath of the Acquisition of Manus: NDRC Requires Moon Shadow and Steppe Star to Reject U.S. Capital; ByteDance Is Also Restricted

According to Bloomberg, citing insiders, in recent weeks Chinese regulatory authorities including the National Development and Reform Commission have required multiple AI companies, as part of their financing, to refuse capital originating from the United States unless they receive explicit approval from the government. Moon Shadow and Steppe Star, both preparing for an IPO, have already received related guidance from the NDRC. ByteDance has also been instructed not to introduce new U.S. investors through methods such as transferring existing shares without approval. This is part of the ongoing upgrade of regulatory responses following Meta’s $2 billion acquisition of the Chinese AI agent startup Manus. Previously, China imposed outbound travel restrictions on Manus co-founders Xiao Hong and Ji Yichao and reviewed whether the transaction violated technology export controls and foreign investment regulations.