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What just happened? Beijing has blocked Meta's acquisition of Manus, the Chinese-founded AI agent startup it bought in December for more than $2 billion. The National Development and Reform Commission, China's powerful state planner, cited national security concerns and told the companies to cancel the transaction.

The ruling is a major setback for Mark Zuckerberg's increasingly expensive AI ambitions. Manus burst onto the scene early last year after releasing what it described as the world's first general AI agent – software capable of carrying out complex tasks such as research, coding, website creation, and analysis with minimal human input.

The product reportedly drew millions of users within months.…