Would you pay thousands of dollars to get early access to an AI tool just so you could test it? That’s exactly what’s happening with Manus AI, the latest AI model to come from China. Many are hailing it as China’s DeepSeek 2.0 moment. But what exactly is Manus AI, what does it do so differently from existing models, and is the hype worth it? Well, people are divided on this, and here’s everything you need to know.
What is Manus AI
Manus AI, developed by the Chinese startup Butterfly Effect, is an autonomous AI agent designed to carry out complex tasks on your computer without detailed instructions.
For example, you can ask it to research something, manage your social media accounts, code websites and apps, shop online, or do any other work that you do on your computer. Just ask the AI agent and it will follow up and complete it for you. The people behind Manus AI shared several use cases on their website from analyzing the best stocks to buy to finding potential customers for your product, etc.
This isn’t the first time, we have seen something like this. OpenAI’s Operator and Claude’s Computer Use also do the same thing. So why all the hype around Manus AI’s release? Is it purely based on the results or even marketing? Manus creators proudly highlight its performance on the GAIA benchmark, where it reportedly outperformed OpenAI’s Deep Research agent.
However, Manus isn’t built from scratch but uses existing advanced AI models, notably Anthropic’s Claude and Alibaba’s Qwen, fine-tuning them to achieve high-level performance.
How to Access Manus AI
Right now, Manus AI is in the beta phase and only available to users who have an invitation. Because of the hype and popularity, the servers couldn’t handle the demand leading to a shortage of invites too. This has caused their prices to rise very high on Chinese marketplaces like Xianyu.
The exact date for public release isn’t available yet, but the developers say they are working hard to fix the server problems and make Manus AI accessible to more users soon.
Is Manus AI Really DeepSeek 2.0 From China
People who have tried Manus AI are impressed though. One user was able to easily manage 50 social media accounts at once, which wasn’t possible before. Companies can find this helpful in handling many social media pages and boosting engagement.
Rowan Cheung, founder of The Rundown AI newsletter, described Manus AI’s launch as a potential turning point for AI agents and said “China’s second DeepSeek moment is here”. Cheung personally tried Manus and was able to create a personal biography website about himself, found the best place to rent in San Francisco where there are fewer crimes and more AI companies and startups, and even built an AI course with eight chapters.
Bilawal Sidhu, a former Google employee, and AI YouTuber, reviewed Manus positively, describing it as the best example of an autonomous AI he’s seen. He said, “It’s like you’re standing over the shoulder of somebody using a computer… asking them what to do at the highest level, and it does it for you.”
However, not everyone agrees. Users have had mixed experiences. Some faced problems like crashes and repetitive errors, even with simple tasks like ordering food or booking flights.
TechCrunch reporter Kyle Wiggers humorously showed Manus struggling to handle basic online tasks. The way Manus launched also caused controversy. Some people criticized it for intentionally making invites scarce, driving prices very high online.
Some critics point out that, unlike DeepSeek—which was popular for creating its own original AI technology—Manus uses existing AI models and just improves them. An open-source alternative named OpenManus also appeared quickly, showing that Manus’s basic idea isn’t very unique.
So, is Manus AI the next big AI breakthrough for China—like DeepSeek 2.0—or just a quick trend boosted by influencers and hype? Manus looks promising and has gotten a lot of attention, but it also faces several challenges. We’ll have to wait and see if Manus can meet everyone’s expectations or if it disappears because of growing doubts and competition.
