Meta has made a bold move in the artificial intelligence race by buying Manus, a startup specialized in autonomous AI agents, for more than $2 billion. The deal, one of the most striking of the year, shows that Mark Zuckerberg’s company doesn’t want to be left behind in the new phase of AI: assistants that do things, not just that talk.
Manus became famous in early 2025 for unveiling a digital worker capable of carrying out complex tasks on its own, such as analyzing documents, managing projects, or browsing websites to gather information. Until now, most chatbots were limited to holding conversations; Manus’s agents could chain actions without constant supervision. And that, for Meta, is exactly what it needs to integrate real artificial intelligence into WhatsApp, Instagram, or Facebook.
Why does it matter? The Manus acquisition fits a broader trend: the big tech companies no longer compete only over who has the biggest language model, but over offering agents that actually do the work. Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI are also in this race. For the average user, this means that, in a few months, you could have an assistant in your usual apps that not only answers questions, but makes reservations, manages your email, or updates your social media for you. All without lifting a finger.
— Marta, for intermittent intelligence.
