🧠 Meta's new $2 billion wunderkind
At just 33 years old, Xiao Hong (nickname "Red Xiao") has landed the deal of the year: Mark Zuckerberg is buying his startup Manus for $2 billion.
From tinkerer to titan: Xiao started as a student with simple WeChat tools. He laid the foundation for his wealth through discipline: He repeatedly turned down multi-million dollar offers from ByteDance (TikTok) to realize his own vision of an "autonomous agent."
Strategic fox: To escape US sanctions against China, he simply relocated his company to Singapore in 2025. Only this move made the mega-exit to Meta possible.
New focus: After the deal, Xiao will be integrated directly into Meta's management to make the Llama AI actionable.
💡 Lesson learned: Xiao Hong is the prototype of the modern AI founder: technically brilliant, geopolitically sharp, and with the patience to wait for the right offer.
The China Survival Guide for Western Businesses
Entity setup, WeChat strategy, hiring your first local team. 12+ years on the ground in Shanghai.
