Author: rb809rb

Olivia Rodrigo Earns Fourth Hot 100 No. 1 With “Drop Dead”

Olivia Rodrigo‘s “Drop Dead” has debuted at No. 1 on the Hot 100, Billboard confirmed on Monday, marking the pop star’s fourth-ever chart-topper in a strong sign for her upcoming third album You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love.

Per Billboard, “Drop Dead” opened with 27.9 million streams along with 23.8 million radio airplay impressions and 45,000 traditional sales. Rodrigo released several different versions of the song last week, which helped boost some of those digital sales, though she also opened at No. 1 on the streaming songs chart as well.

Rodrigo dethroned Ella Langley’s smash hit “Choosin’ Texas” to take the top slot, as Langley fell to Number 2. Bruno Mars’ “I Just Might” came in at third and Olivia Dean’s “Man I Need” dropped to four. Langley rounds out the top 5 this week with “Be Her.”

Aside from “Drop Dead” Rodrigo previously topped the Hot 100 with her breakout hit “Driver’s License” and fellow Sour track “Good 4 U.” She earned her third number one back in 2023 with her Guts lead single “Vampire.”

You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love is one of the most anticipated albums of 2026 and will officially release on June 12. Rodrigo has been ramping up her promotion for the upcoming project, coming out as a surprise guest at Coachella last week during Addison Rae’s set to debut “Drop Dead.” She also made a surprise open mic night appearance over the weekend at Pete’s Candy Store in New York to perform the track.

April 27, 2026
Box Office Stunner: ‘Michael’ Over-the-Moon With Record $97M U.S. Opening, $219M Globally

In another win for a non-franchise title, Antoine Fuqua’s Michael Jackson biopic pulled off a moon walk for the ages at the worldwide box office with a record-smashing $97.2 million domestic opening and $121.6 million foreign launch for a global blast-off of $218.8 million, according to weekend actuals.

Final weekend numbers show the movie coming in slightly ahead Sunday estimated $97 domestic launch and $120.4 foreign debut.

Michael, coming in nearly $30 million ahead of expectations, boasts the biggest domestic opening of all time for any biopic after passing up Oppenheimer ($80 million), not adjusted for inflation. And the Lionsgate movie eclipsed Boheiman Rhapsody to rank as the top worldwide opening for a music biopic. Universal, a powerhouse on the international front, is releasing the film overseas on behalf of Lionsgate

Heading into the weekend, producer Graham King and Lionsgate never imagined Michael had a shot at becoming the King of All Biopics in terms of its North America opening, since even the most bullish tracking showed it coming in at around $70 million. Instead, they were instead focused on breaking the record-setting bow of Straight Outta Compton and ruling the music biopic category. But by Friday night, it became clear the movie was going to approach $100 million domestically after becoming the latest title to benefit from keeping its storyline family-friendly and appealing to those who simply wanted to celebrate Jackson’s music.

Other milestones: It marks Lionsgate’s best debut since the pandemic, and its sixth-biggest ever behind four Hunger Games installments and the final Twillight film. And it danced past the opening of 2026 sleeper hit Project Hail Mary to mark the second-biggest opening of the year, both in North America and globally, behind Universal and Illumination’s The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.

Overseas, where Jackson is an even bigger draw, Michael is likewise off to a record-breaking start with $121.6 million from 84 markets, including $10.7 million in previews and early screenings. In 63 of those — including the U.K., Germany, France, Italy, Germany, Brazil, Australia, Spain, Netherlands and South Asia — it sent a new benchmark for the music biopic genre.

“Above all, it reflects the tremendous outpouring of love and affection from moviegoers around the world, underscoring the strength and vitality of the theatrical box office. If you give audiences what they want, they will come,” Lionsgate Motion Picture Group Chair Adam Fogelson said, in addition to thanking all involved in making the film a reality.

Michael opened in virtually every corner of the globe; one exception is Japan, where Jackson’s fanbase is enormous. The 2011 Michael Jackson posthumous concert doc This Is It earned $196 million at the foreign office; Japan’s contribution was $57 million. Kino and Lionsgate have set a June release date.

Endorsed by the Jackson estate, Michael faced its fair share of challenges in reaching the big screen. It hit major delays when the decision was made by producer Graham King and Lionsgate to spend tens of millions reworking the third act to avoid mention of the allegations of child sexual abuse that engulfed the King of Pop in scandal before his death in 2009. All told, the final budget of $200 million appears worth it. Universal is handling the film overseas on behalf of Lionsgate, save for Japan.

Phenomenal world-of-mouth is more than making up for generally lousy reviews (its Rotten Tomatoes critics score is 40 percent).

Exit polls quickly revealed Michael isn’t just appointment viewing for hard-core fans and that strong word-of-mouth is more than making for one of the biggest divides in recent memory between critics and audiences: The film is graced with 97 percent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes — the best ever for the genre; PostTrak exit scores are in the low 90s and a definite recommend of 85 percent, levels rarely seen. And while it didn’t earn a perfect grade on CinemaScore, it did earn a good-enough A-.

Michael‘s success is a result of playing across all ethnicities and age groups. While it did over-index among Black moviegoers (38 percent), Latinos accounted for a sizable 26 percent of the audience, followed by white moviegoers at 26 percent, according to PostTrak.

And the following age stats are a distributor’s are a dream come true, but rarely do. Moviegoers over the age of 55 rarely turn out for opening weekend; teenagers can be just as elusive. In this case, those 55 and older made up anywhere from 15 to percent of ticket buyers, while teens made up 6 percent to 7 percent (believe me, those are excellent numbers). Gen Zers and younger Millennials also turned out in force, with those between the ages of 18 and 34 making up 45 percent to 50 percent of the opening-weekend audience. But those over the age of 35 almost matched those numbers, or 44 percent to 48 percent, including those over the age of 55 who were previously mentioned.

Elsewhere, Super Mario Galaxy is hardly complaining about coming in second ruling the roost for weeks, since it’s now focused on becoming the first film of the year to join the billion-dollar club after finishing Sunday with a global total of $871 million.

Nor is Hail Mary feeling sorry for itself as it racked up more milestones in its sixth outing when crossing the $300 million mark domestically and $600 million globally to finish Sunday with a worldwide total of $613.3 million. In North America, it placed third with $13 million after falling 36 percent, the lowest decline of any pic in the top 10.

From New Line, Lee Cronin’s The Mummy fell 58 percent to $5.6 million for a fourth-place finish in its second weekend for a 10-day domestic total of $23.5 million. The pic, produced by Blumhouse and Atomic Monster, is scaring up more business overseas, where it grossed another $12.4 million for a foreign tally of $42 million. Its global tally is $65.5 million against a reportedly modest budget of $22 million.

At the specialty box office, A24’s edgy and daring The Drama is an official sleeper hit after opening to so-so numbers amid solid, but not spectacular, reviews and audience scores. But word-of-mouth began spreading among Gen Zers, and the movie, starring Zendaya and Robert Pattinson, became a “thing.” And with many distracted attention to Michael’s opening, The Drama quietly cleared the $100 million globally, including a foreign war chest of $67 million and $44.8 million domestically (it rounded out the top in North America with $2.6 million.)

A24, unfortunately, couldn’t trumpet The Drama, considering its latest movie, Mother Mary, all-out bombed in its nationwide expansion. The David Lowery-directed film, whose cast is led by Anne Hathaway, Michaela Coel, FKA Twigs, Hunger Schafer and more, opened in ninth place with $1.1 million from 1,103 theaters.

Mother Mary‘s timing isn’t great, at least for Hathaway, since it arrives in theaters just one week before The Devil Wears Prada 2 kicks off the summer box office. However, no one is coming down too hard on Hathaway for the failure of Lowery’s horror-thriller pic about an aging pop star to resonate with audiences. Prada 2 is tracking to be a hit of record-breaking proportions and reunites Hathaway with Meryl Streep, Stanley Tucci and Emily Blunt.

April 27, 12:30 p.m.: Updated with final weekend numbers for Michael.

This story was originally published April 26 at 9:30 a.m.

April 27, 2026
Timeline: The highs and lows of the US-UK ‘special relationship’

The United Kingdom’s ambassador to the United States, Christian Turner, has called the four-day visit by King Charles III to the US an effort to “renew and revitalise a unique friendship” between the two allies.

The visit, which began on Monday, comes at a tense period in US-UK relations as US President Donald Trump continues to publicly criticise British Prime Minister Keir Starmer over his stance on the US-Israeli war on Iran, accusing him of not assisting Washington in the fight against Iran or helping the US reopen the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

Recommended Stories

list of 3 itemsend of list

Days after the war began – and after Starmer initially refused to allow US forces to use UK military bases for strikes on Iran – Trump described the British leader as “not Winston Churchill”.

Despite the US gaining independence from Britain in 1776 and fighting the War of 1812 against it, the two countries have for the most part remained firm allies and have further solidified their relationship over the past century into what is often called the “special relationship”.

Nevertheless, their ties have faced periodic strain, even when they have agreed to align on larger issues.

Here is a timeline of the highs and lows in this “special relationship”:

1940-1944: World War II

One of the most significant alignments between the countries took place during World War II when London and Washington closely coordinated the war effort with the Soviet Union for the Allies against the Axis powers, led by Nazi Germany.

The two countries came together specifically on what became the “Germany first” strategy, in which they prioritised defeating the Nazis over combating imperial Japan.

In that same period, US President Franklin D Roosevelt also signed into law the Lend-Lease Act in March 1941. It provided war and military supplies to the UK and others in the Allied camp, even before the US formally joined the war in December 1941.

US President Franklin D Roosevelt, left, meets British Prime Minister Winston Churchill on the HMS Prince of Wales in Placentia Bay, Newfoundland, in August 1941 for their first conference during World War II [File: Fox Photos/Hulton Archive/Getty Images]

1956: Suez Canal crisis

France and the UK quietly coordinated with Israel to launch a joint invasion of Egypt after President Gamal Abdel Nasser moved to nationalise the Suez Canal in 1956.

Furious at having been kept in the dark and worried that the Soviet Union, then a close partner of Egypt, might be pulled into the fighting, US President Dwight Eisenhower backed a United Nations resolution condemning the assault.

Washington also warned it would withhold crucial financial support from its European partners, and within days, the fighting came to a halt.

The crisis was eventually brought to an end by the UN’s first armed peacekeeping force, a pioneering mission that became the model for later UN peacekeeping operations.

1982: Falklands War

When Argentina in April 1982 invaded the Falkland Islands, which had been under British control since the 19th century, the US at first refused a request by the UK for military assistance.

The US, which was also an ally of Argentina, wished to stay out of the dispute. Instead, US President Ronald Reagan urged UK Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher to negotiate a peace deal and recommended agreeing to joint control of the islands.

Thatcher disagreed, and the UK took the islands back after a 10-week war, in which the US did provide logistical support to the UK.

1994: Northern Ireland

US President Bill Clinton granted Gerry Adams, leader of Sinn Fein, a Northern Ireland political party, a 48-hour visa to travel to the US to speak at an event in New York.

London had strongly lobbied against the visa. The UK believed Adams was a member of the Irish Republican Army, which was designated a “terrorist organisation” and had carried out bombings in the UK and Ireland.

It was later reported by Irish diplomat Sean Donlon that for several weeks after the visa was issued, UK Prime Minister John Major refused to take Clinton’s calls. In the end, however, Adams’s visit served to bring the US into Northern Ireland peace negotiations, which led to the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.

1998-1999: Kosovo War

While the Kosovo War, the conflict between ethnic Albanian separatists and Yugoslavia, is often seen as a moment of strong UK-US alignment, there were crucial disagreements between the two countries on how far military action should go to intervene.

Amid human rights atrocities and ethnic cleansing by Serb forces as well as the displacement of one million Albanians, the UK, then led by Prime Minister Tony Blair, was one of the most forceful proponents of military intervention against Yugoslavia and its Serb leader Slobodan Milosevic.

Blair repeatedly called on Clinton to take a more aggressive stance, including the possibility of deploying ground forces, but Clinton was reluctant to do so.

The US favoured a narrowly focused NATO air campaign, which took place, whereas the UK worried that airpower on its own might fail to halt Serb forces. In the end, the war was ended after a 78-day NATO bombing campaign.

US President Bill Clinton, right, meets with British Labour Party leader Tony Blair in the Oval Office of the White House on April 12, 1996 [Ruth Fremson/AP Photo]

2003: Invasion of Iraq

The Iraq War marked one of the closest periods of political and military coordination between London and Washington in decades. Blair strongly backed US President George W Bush’s plan to invade Iraq, committing British forces to the US-led invasion in March 2003.

Britain was Washington’s most important ally in the coalition, providing tens of thousands of soldiers and intelligence support.

Blair backed Bush at a time when other US allies like France and Canada were firmly opposed to the invasion, as were many people in the UK.

Blair’s decision triggered one of the largest protests in UK history, bringing more than one million people onto the streets of London.

2011: Libya war

After the fall and death of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, US President Barack Obama revealed there were key differences between Washington and London over how to manage Libya in the post-Gaddafi era.

In a 2016 interview, Obama accused UK Prime Minister David Cameron of becoming “distracted by a range of other things” after the intervention and said he had placed too much faith in the Europeans “being invested in the follow-up”.

April 27, 2026
Lady Gaga and Doechii Serve Sass and High Fashion in ‘Runway’ Music Video

Lady Gaga and Doechii have released the music video for their latest collaboration, “Runway,” serving sass and high fashion in the Parris Goebel-directed clip.

The song features in 20th Century Studios’ upcoming film, “The Devil Wears Prada 2″ and plays during a behind-the-scenes moment during Milan’s Fashion Week as models are getting ready.

The video lives up to the high fashion focus of the film, with each artist taking turns in different looks. What follows is an explosion of outfits and backup dancers that concludes with, you guessed it, Gaga and Doechii strutting down the runway.

“The Devil Wears Prada 2” follows Meryl Streep as Runway magazine’s editor-in-chief, Miranda Priestly, dealing with the decline of print journalism and attempting to find her footing in a dying industry. Priestly finds herself facing off against Emily Blunt’s character, her former assistant who is now a high-powered executive for Christian Dior with advertising money that Priestly desperately needs.

After its release, the single registered a total of 2.962.332 unfiltered streams on Spotify, debuting at number 32 on the Global Spotify chart. It also debuted at number 25 on the US Spotify chart with over 727K total streams.

Speaking about their mutual admiration for one another, Gaga praised her collaborator. In an interview with British Vogue, Gaga said, “You don’t often see someone come out of the gate with a pen that feels immediately legendary. That’s Doechii to me. I fell in love with her music and her raw, deeply personal perspective.” She added, “The power in her words, her vulnerability, the way she rhymes with this wild mix of audacity and emotional precision – it struck me to the core.”

Last year, Doechii presented Gaga with the Innovator Award at the 2025 iHeartRadio Music Awards. “Growing up, I was nothing like most of the people I was around and everything about me represented a community of alternative kids that were underrepresented in my environment.”

Andrew Watt co-produced the track alongside Bruno Mars, Cirkut, and Dernst “D’Mile” Emile II. Watt also co-wrote the song with Gaga, Mars, Doechii, Cirkut, D’Mile, and Jayda Love.

Gaga also makes a cameo appearance in the film, and recently wrapped the Mayhem Ball Tour.

April 27, 2026
70% XRP Ledger Drop Finally Makes Sense: Price and Network Align

The recent network contraction of $XRP aligning with what price action has been indicating for several months.

Network and prices align

Over the past month, there has been a significant decline in payment activity on the $XRP Ledger, with transaction counts falling by about 70%. Although that type of decline appears concerning at first, it actually represents a normalization phase rather than structural degradation.

There was a brief disparity between on-chain activity and real market demand as a result of earlier network usage spikes that drove transaction counts well above baseline levels. The asset was exposed to a protracted correction as a result of the surge’s failure to result in persistent price strength. A reset is currently taking place.

$XRP/USDT Chart by TradingView

Alongside the cooling of activity to more sustainable levels, prices are stabilizing. From a market structure standpoint, $XRP has been steadily declining before establishing a base around the $1.40 area. This level’s constant defense suggests that buyers are taking over more regularly and sellers are losing control.

$XRP enters better cycle

This is consistent with the decline in network activity, as more consistent participation replaces speculative or transient usage. Alignment is crucial in this situation. Volatility tends to rise and trends become unstable when network metrics and price diverge. Both sides converge as a result of the current contraction.

A cleaner environment for accumulation may result from lower transaction volume, since it reduces noise and speculative churn. It’s critical to realize that declining ledger activity does not always indicate deteriorating fundamentals. It often represents the elimination of excess demand that was never sustainable in the first place.

Now that the excess has been removed, the residual activity serves as a more reliable measure of organic usage. This stage may serve as the starting point for a recovery in the future. It would indicate that $XRP is starting a better cycle if the price keeps holding support while network activity stabilizes rather than collapsing further.

April 27, 2026
Shibarium Crosses 1 Billion Transaction as User Growth Hits 2026 Highest

The Shiba Inu ecosystem is seeing growing adoption across the Shibarium layer 2 network, as the asset continues to record a massive influx of new users.

This growing momentum across the $SHIB ecosystem has quickened its pace following the recent crypto market resurgence that triggered a notable shift from the prolonged market volatility seen in the previous months.

Shiba Inu notes rapid adoption

On Monday, April 27, the Shiba Inu team disclosed data revealing that the leading meme token has seen a rapid surge in user adoption and network activity over the past week.

According to a recent update shared on X, the number of Shiba Inu ($SHIB) holders surged significantly between April 20 and April 27, 2026, with 24,000 additional wallets being added to the ecosystem within the period.

On April 25, the network saw the highest spike in holders recorded since 2026 after adding 10,718 new holders in a single day.

As such, Shiba Inu now boasts over 1.585 million in the total number of $SHIB wallets, an all-time high record of holders.

As of April 26 and 27, the network recorded more moderate increases of 1,040 and 1,100 holders respectively as adoption continues.

Shibarium hits 1 billion transactions

Following the growth in the Shiba Inu holders, its on-chain activity has also signaled strength across its Shibarium network.

Amid the growing momentum, the data further revealed that Shibarium has now processed over 1 billion transactions. While this marks a major milestone for the $SHIB ecosystem, it signals the growing usage of the Shiba Inu layer two network.

April 27, 2026
Wrong click earns Michigan woman a $251,738 lottery jackpot

Odd News // 1 month ago

Virginia man buys 20 tickets for one lottery drawing, wins 20 times

March 27 (UPI) — A Virginia man bought 20 identical tickets for a single Pick 4 lottery drawing and ended up winning $5,000 for each ticket — a total of $100,000.

April 27, 2026
Paramount Asks FCC to Sign Off on Middle East Investment in Warner Bros. Megadeal

Paramount has asked the Federal Communications Commission to sign off on its equity investment from three prominent Middle East sovereign wealth funds that are backing the company’s $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery.

In a petition for declaratory ruling to the FCC signed by Paramount legal chief Makan Delrahim, Paramount asks the Brendan Carr-led commission to sign off on the deal involving Saudi Arabia’s PIF (public investment fund), L’Imad, an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund, and a Qatar Investment Authority fund.

Paramount notes that David Ellison and his father Larry Ellison, as well as RedBird Capital, will control all voting shares in the company, and that the sovereign funds are only acquiring non-voting equity shares.

“Upon consummation of the Proposed Investment, Petitioner expects that the aggregate indirect foreign ownership of equity interests in Paramount will be approximately 49.5 percent,” Paramount writes, underscoring the extent to which the company is leaning on the foreign investment.

Paramount is asking for a ruling that would allow up to 100 percent of equity or voting shares to be owned by foreign holders, though that is a procedural maneuver rather than a sign of any future plans. The FCC approval only applies to the foreign financing, not to the deal itself, which secured WBD shareholder approval last week.

“Paramount has filed a customary petition for a declaratory ruling with the FCC relating to the indirect foreign investment in Paramount’s broadcast television stations as a result of the recent equity syndication,” a Paramount spokesperson tells The Hollywood Reporter. “An FCC filing is completely standard for investments such as this and is not a condition to closing Paramount’s acquisition of WBD.

“When the transaction and equity syndication close, the Ellison family and RedBird will collectively hold the largest equity stake in the combined company and continue to be the sole owners of Class A Common Stock, representing 100% of the voting shares, with no other equity syndication party having any governance rights, voting shares, or Board representation,” the statement continues. “The combination of Paramount and WBD’s complementary assets will enhance competition while creating a strong champion for creative talent and consumer choice.”

The three Middle East funds were reported to be providing $24 billion of capital to back the Warners deal. The FCC filing confirms that the PIF will be the largest contributor, owning 15.1% of Paramount’s equity after the deal closes, with L’Imad owning 12.8%, and Qatar’s fund owning 10.6%. Collectively those three funds will control 38.5% of Paramount equity shares (again, non-voting shares). The remaining foreign equity owners include passive investors in RedBird funds, and entities that have acquired Paramount shares and have filed Form 13F with the SEC.

Paramount is also giving answers to the Committee for the Assessment of Foreign Participation in the United States Telecommunications Services Sector (sometimes called “Team Telecom”), which advises the FCC on national security and law enforcement concerns.

In the filing, Delrahim argued that the foreign investment will ultimately serve to bolster the company’s local news programming, improve its technology stack, and increase the diversity of programming, citing the deal for UFC fights as an example.

“Reducing barriers to further investment in Paramount, including by allowing the company to pursue additional capital from non-U.S. investors, will enable it to allocate additional resources to preserve and enhance the legacy and broad reach of the Licensees’ television broadcast operations,” Delrahim wrote. “In turn, Paramount’s ability to compete in the television broadcast and broader video marketplaces will improve, thereby promoting the strength of the industry overall. The new equity investment, leveraged on the efficiency gains resulting from the Paramount-Skydance transaction, will better position the company to weather continuing challenges facing broadcasters and operators of linear pay-television networks.”

April 27, 2026
Cole Tomas Allen Criminally Charged With Attempting to Assassinate President Trump

Cole Tomas Allen, the alleged gunman at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner at the Washington Hilton, appeared in federal court in Washington on Monday and will be facing three criminal charges, including attempting to assassinate the president.

The 31-year-old, who is suspected of pushing through a security checkpoint on Saturday evening with multiple weapons, was also charged on Monday with transportation of a firearm or ammunition in interstate commerce and discharge of a firearm during a crime of violence. The assassination attempt charge is the heaviest and could put him behind bars for life.

Allen was apprehended at the Hilton on Saturday night as the president, first lady, and vice president sat on stage during the meal portion of the event and before any major speeches were made. During the half-hour court appearance just before 2 p.m. ET on Monday, Allen was wearing a light blue jumpsuit and spoke little, only to confirm his name and that he understood the proceedings to U.S. Magistrate Judge Matthew J. Sharbaugh.

At the appearance, Judge Sharbaugh ruled that the suspect is entitled to court-appointed attorneys; this is based on a financial affidavit Allen submitted to the court.

The assassination attempt is considered a domestic terrorism charge and carries a potential life sentence. Judge Sharbaugh ordered the criminal complaint against Allen unsealed. Once the case is unsealed, officials will be able to brief the nation on the case.

U.S. prosecutors used the brief appearance to lay out some of the details of their case against Allen. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jocelyn Ballantine said Allen “traveled across multiple state lines with a firearm” and that he “attempted to assassinate the president with a 12-gauge pump action shotgun.” They asked that he be placed in federal custody.

Allen’s attorneys confirmed at the hearing that he has no prior criminal record.

More to come.

April 27, 2026
China Blocks Meta’s $2 Billion Acquisition of AI Startup Manus
In brief

China’s National Development and Reform Commission ordered Meta to unwind its acquisition of AI startup Manus.

The December 2025 deal was valued at approximately $2 billion.

Manus co-founders were barred from leaving China during the regulatory review.
China’s National Development and Reform Commission ordered Meta to unwind its acquisition of Chinese AI startup Manus, with regulators requiring both parties to reverse the transaction.

The commission stated it will “prohibit foreign investment in Manus in accordance with laws and regulations, and requires the parties involved to withdraw the acquisition transaction.”

Meta had announced the acquisition in late December 2025 for an estimated $2 billion. Within weeks, China’s commerce ministry launched an investigation in January 2026.

By March 2026, the scrutiny intensified. Manus co-founders Xiao Hong and Ji Yichao were summoned to Beijing for regulatory meetings and subsequently barred from leaving the country, according to Reuters. The startup had already begun unwinding operations months earlier, closing its China offices and laying off dozens of employees in July 2025.

Manus develops what it calls “truly autonomous” AI agents capable of planning and executing tasks independently. The company relocated from China to Singapore around mid-2025, according to TechCrunch, though the move didn’t stop Chinese regulators from issuing the veto on Monday.

The startup’s growth trajectory attracted significant investor attention. Manus completed a $75 million funding round led by Benchmark in May 2025 and reached $100 million in annual recurring revenue by December 2025, just eight months after launching.

The National Development and Reform Commission’s involvement—as the ministry overseeing economic planning and AI policy—underscores the strategic importance Beijing places on artificial intelligence assets. Around 100 Manus employees had already moved into Meta’s Singapore offices in March 2026, TechCrunch reported.

Meta’s acquisition of Manus is part of a larger push by the social media giant—the parent company behind Facebook and Instagram—to massively grow its AI ambitions and try to catch up to giants like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google.

The company confirmed last week that it will cut 8,000 jobs and leave 6,000 roles unfilled, and then announced it will potentially spend billions of dollars on Amazon’s AI chips.

Daily Debrief Newsletter

Start every day with the top news stories right now, plus original features, a podcast, videos and more.
April 27, 2026