China has blocked Meta ’s attempt to buy one of the world’s most high-profile artificial intelligence startups . The unwinding of the $2 billion acquisition of Manus, which is based in Singapore but was founded in China, comes as Chinese authorities attempt to prevent US firms from taking local talent and intellectual property. The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) said on Monday it would “prohibit foreign investment in Manus in accordance with laws and regulations, and requires the parties involved to withdraw the acquisition transaction.” Manus first gained global attention last year after its researchers claimed to have developed the “world’s first” fully autonomous AI agent . The general-purpose AI was designed to carry out a variety of tasks independently, from booking holidays to developing video games. Manus co-founder Yichao Ji described it as “the next evolution of AI” when he first shared a demo video of its abilities last March.…