Manus AI is likely one of the hottest AI agent startups round, lately elevating $75 million at a half-billion-dollar valuation in a spherical led by Benchmark.
However two unnamed sources instructed Semafor that the funding is now beneath evaluate by the U.S. Treasury Division over its compliance with 2023 restrictions on investing in Chinese language corporations.
Benchmark’s attorneys cleared the funding as a result of Manus isn’t technically growing its personal AI fashions, however is as a substitute a “wrapper” round current ones, Semafor reported.
These attorneys additionally concluded Manus is just not China-based because it’s integrated within the Cayman Islands. (That’s a standard construction utilized by Chinese language corporations, like Alibaba, to entry international capital.)
Benchmark has attracted criticism for its Manus funding from Founders Fund companion Delian Asparouhov, who posted on X “wow, actions have penalties?”.
Benchmark, Manus, and Treasury didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark.
