US-China Tech War

Beijing just dropped a one-line bomb on the global AI industry. China’s National Development and Reform Commission ordered Meta to unwind its $2 billion acquisition of Manus — the AI agent startup that was supposed to be Zuckerberg’s secret weapon. No negotiation. No diplomatic hedging. Just: reverse the deal. This isn’t a regulatory hiccup. It’s the moment the AI race officially split into two separate universes. What Made Manus Worth $2 Billion Manus builds general-purpose AI agents — software that doesn’t just chat but acts. It codes applications, runs market research, manages data analysis, and prepares budgets autonomously. Think of it as the generation after chatbots. ...

The United States has its executive orders. The EU has its AI Act. But on March 5, 2026, China unveiled something far more sweeping: a 141-page national blueprint that essentially bets the country’s economic future on artificial intelligence. China’s 15th Five-Year Plan, released at the opening of the National People’s Congress in Beijing, mentions AI more than 50 times and includes what officials are calling an “AI+ action plan” — a comprehensive strategy to embed artificial intelligence into virtually every sector of the world’s second-largest economy. From manufacturing floors to hospital wards, from logistics networks to classrooms, Beijing is telling the world: AI isn’t a side project. It’s the project. ...