Meta’s acquisition of Manus: China’s National Development and Reform Commission orders that companies including Moonlit Entity (Yue Zhi An Mian), Stepwise Star (Jie Yue Xing Chen), and others refuse U.S. capital, and ByteDance is also affected

ME News Report, April 24 (UTC+8), Bloomberg citing informed sources reports that Chinese regulatory authorities, including the National Development and Reform Commission, have demanded several AI companies in recent weeks to refuse U.S.-sourced capital during fundraising unless explicitly approved by the government. The Moonlit Shadow and Stepping Star, which are preparing for IPO, have both received relevant guidance from the NDRC. ByteDance has also been instructed not to introduce new U.S. investors through methods such as old share transfers without approval.

This move is part of Beijing’s ongoing regulatory escalation following Meta’s $2 billion acquisition of the Chinese AI agent startup Manus. Previously, China had imposed outbound restrictions on Manus co-founders Xiao Hong and Ji Yichao, and was reviewing whether the transaction violated technology export controls and foreign investment regulations. (Source: Bloomberg)