Chinese startup responsible for Manus reportedly secures $75M in funding.
Butterfly Effect Startup Raises $75 Million for AI Development
Beijing-based startup, Butterfly Effect, has recently secured an impressive $75 million in funding for their innovative artificial intelligence service, Manus. This investment has been led by venture capital firm Benchmark, which indicates a significant increase in the company’s valuation to approximately $500 million — a remarkable fivefold jump from its previous valuation of $100 million following an earlier funding round where they raised around $10 million from Tencent Holdings Ltd. and HSG.
What is Manus?
Manus is a cutting-edge AI service developed by Butterfly Effect that began its early access program just a couple of months ago. During its launch, users witnessed Manus successfully performing various complex tasks, including website development and real estate research. The service is designed to handle multifaceted requests by interacting with multiple third-party applications, optimizing the way users interact with technology.
Early User Feedback
While Manus has showcased impressive capabilities, early users reported some challenges after testing the service shortly after its launch. For example, when attempting to place a restaurant order, Manus experienced a crash. Additionally, there were instances where the AI only partially completed tasks, skipping vital steps. Such feedback is crucial as it highlights areas that require further refinement.
Technology Behind Manus
The functionality of Manus is powered by multiple AI agents, which utilize large language models (LLMs) tailored to execute tasks with minimal human direction. When a user inputs a command, an orchestration engine deconstructs this request into smaller, manageable steps and assigns each step to the most appropriate AI agent.
Recent reports suggest that Manus leverages one of two key LLMs from Anthropic PBC – either Claude 3.5 Sonnet or Claude 3.7 Sonnet. Claude 3.5 Sonnet, recognized as one of the most advanced coding models at its release last year, is complemented by Claude 3.7 Sonnet, an enhanced version that was introduced earlier this year.
Features of Manus
Both of these LLMs include a feature known as "computer use," enabling them to complete multistep tasks by utilizing external applications. For this feature to work seamlessly, users must grant the models access to a Linux-based computer or virtual machine equipped with a browser.
Initially, when Manus was launched in March, it was offered for free through an invite-only early access program. The recent funding indicates a strong belief among investors in the potential for monetization of the service.
Subscription Plans and Pricing
In late March, Butterfly Effect rolled out two subscription tiers for Manus, priced at $39 and $199 per month. The higher-priced plan allows users to execute up to five simultaneous tasks and offers an elevated limit on the computational resources available to Manus for processing user queries.
Competition in the AI Market
Manus faces competition from other AI automation services, particularly Operator, which was launched by OpenAI in late January. Operator is capable of performing tasks such as filling out forms and making e-commerce purchases, powered by a model referred to as the Computer-Using Agent, partially based on the highly regarded GPT-4o.
Final Thoughts
Butterfly Effect is making waves in the AI industry with its ambitious service Manus, backed by significant funding and a focus on enhancing user experience. As the technology evolves and user feedback is taken into account, Manus may have the potential to become a leading tool in the landscape of AI-driven automation.
