What happens when a Chinese AI startup tries to sell itself to a major US tech company, but Beijing decides it doesn’t like the deal?

In this week’s episode, Trivium China Podcast host Andrew Polk is joined by Trivium’s Head of Tech Policy Research Kendra Schaefer to unpack the latest in the Meta-Manus acquisition saga and what it reveals about China’s evolving approach to tech regulation and national security.

The two discuss:

• Why Chinese regulators ordered the Meta-Manus deal unwound
• How Beijing is using dormant foreign investment review powers in new ways
• The role of VIE structures and “Singapore washing” in cross-border tech deals
• China’s growing concerns around technology outflow
• What this all means for Chinese startups, founders, and the future of US-China tech competition

Andrew and Kendra also explore how both Washington and Beijing are increasingly converging around the same core question: who gets to control strategically important technology?