📋 Quick Takeaways

• Meta acquires AI agent startup Manus for over $2 billion to boost advanced AI capabilities.
• Nvidia finalizes $5 billion investment in Intel shares, stabilizing the US chip ecosystem.
• SoftBank agrees to buy DigitalBridge for $4 billion, aggressively expanding AI data center holdings.
• Octopus Energy spins off Kraken, its AI energy platform, at an $8.65 billion valuation.
• MIT & Recursion release Boltz-2, an AI model predicting protein structures in seconds.
• Google rolls out Gemini 3 Flash globally, integrating native audio and complex workflow handling.

💰 Major Acquisitions & Corporate Moves

Meta Acquires AI Agent Startup Manus for $2 Billion+

Strategic Expansion: On December 30, Meta agreed to acquire the AI agent startup Manus for a reported $2 billion+. This acquisition targets the enhancement of Meta’s advanced AI agent capabilities and “reasoning” features within its ecosystem.