The early backers of AI start-up Manus are preparing to buy the company back from Facebook parent Meta for the $2 billion (£1.5bn) originally paid, The Information reported, after the Chinese government ordered Meta in April to unwind the acquisition.

HSG, ZhenFund and Tencent and other early Manus investors are participating in the buyback, with HSG and ZhenFund considering using fresh capital to do so, according to the report.

Meanwhile Manus has grown significantly since the original December deal, with its annualised revenue run rate increasing from $100m at the time of the acquisition to between $400m and $500m currently, the report said.

China-founded, Singapore-based Manus is considering changing its structure to become a joint venture incorporated in China, which could lead to a Hong Kong market listing, according to The Information.

Early investor Benchmark is reportedly not participating in the buyback.

Bloomberg reported earlier this week that Meta had completed operational separation from Manus and had halted data-sharing with the start-up.

Chinese AI start-ups including Zhipu and MiniMax have found success in recent months with Hong Kong listings.

Meta had reportedly been planning to use Manus-like technology in an internal initiative to use AI to replace human workers.

Emily Dalton Smith, a key executive involved with applying the Manus-like technology to Meta’s internal AI agents reportedly said in an internal memo to staff earlier this week that she planned to leave the company.