Manus

General-purpose agent for research, automation, software and creative workflows, with a cloud computer, browser and integrations.

Score calculation

(2 + 4 + 2 + 1 + 7) ÷ 5 = 3.2

5 of six dimensions rated. Unrated dimensions are excluded from the average.

Full scoring method ↗

Setup details

Hosted consumer and team agent; current organization states it resumed independent operations after a temporary Meta ownership period. Model, tools, team plan and data region vary by route.

What fits your needs

Hosted consumer/team agent with browser, virtual computers and connected services; desktop access to local files does not make agent inference local.

Complex tasks

Supports multi-step research, automation, data analysis, app building, slides and creative work through its agent and cloud computer.

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Tradeoffs to expect

Credits and cloud dependency

Free and paid tiers use credits, and desktop tasks still rely on Manus cloud for orchestration and model decision-making.

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How to switch

Pick tier and route

Review current credits and plan features on pricing; Team tier documents SSO, training opt-out, roles and access management.

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Practical questions

Account controls

Trust Center lists security and deletion controls; its listed controls are company-reported assurance and don’t confirm that every task is local or that all copies are immediately deleted.

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Local device and inference

Desktop access can use the user’s machine for files or local scripts, but Manus states orchestration and agent decisions still use core cloud infrastructure.

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Desktop app credit and cloud/local explanation ↗

Account deletion

Manus says account deletion starts deletion of service content but some personal information may be retained for legal, accounting, fraud or claims purposes; Team data retention can be set by the administrator.

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Will my personal data be deleted after I delete my account? ↗

Energy practices

2/10↑

Manus documents cloud orchestration even when the desktop app uses local files or scripts; it provides no product energy report, site electricity disclosure or documented resource controls.

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Manus distinguishes desktop access to the user’s machine from cloud orchestration and agent decisions, establishing a relevant operating boundary. The reviewed service and trust pages do not quantify task energy, locate the serving facility or describe workload controls tied to physical resource reductions.

1 + 1 reporting + 0 electricity + 0 controls = 2/10. This grades documented practices and transparency.

Cloud model/provider, task energy, region/facility electricity and task-level resource controls remain unspecified in reviewed product materials.

Reporting1/3: Manus documentation distinguishes local desktop access from continued cloud orchestration and model decisions, but reports no energy figures.
Electricity sourcing0/3: Cloud dependence is established, but the reviewed product sources do not identify serving regions or the electricity mix for Manus tasks.
Resource controls0/3: The reviewed Manus materials don’t confirm a token/context/compute control that limits physical resources for a task.

Water disclosure

Water reporting has not been assessed for this choice.

Training data

—Depends on the model↑

The product can route tasks through multiple models or providers, so no single training dataset applies to this agent entry.

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The product can route tasks through multiple models or providers, so no single training dataset applies to this agent entry. Model version, provider, and any fine-tuning or post-training sources must be checked for the selected route; a client privacy setting doesn’t confirm training-material permission.

Exact model, version, provider, inherited base, and fine-tuning training data vary by route or are not disclosed in the reviewed product sources.

Your data & privacy

4/10↑

Manus uses cloud agent infrastructure; its desktop can access the local computer but agent orchestration and inference still depend on Manus cloud.

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Manus says its desktop app can interact with the user’s local computer and GPU, but task planning and agent decisions continue to rely on Manus cloud. The Trust Center describes service security controls and account data deletion, but no local-only agent route is established by these sources.

4/10 reflects cloud orchestration and account deletion/security controls, while retention, subprocessors, region and local-only execution remain incompletely established.

Consumer retention, model/provider subprocessors, regional processing, and exact delete/export behavior require product-specific privacy terms and current settings.

Openness

2/10↑

Manus is a hosted proprietary agent; the website describes capabilities but does not publish its runtime or underlying models as open source.

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The official product site offers web and desktop services with a cloud computer and task execution. No agent code or complete model weights are published in the cited product pages, so users cannot independently reproduce the full hosted service.

2/10 reflects a hosted agent service; the reviewed public materials don’t show an open-source client or user-controlled model deployment.

Exact model lineup, runtime source and route-specific licenses vary and are not fully specified in public product materials.

Worker protections

1/10↑

Security and privacy certifications are listed, but worker conditions and voice are not established.

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Manus’s Trust Center lists assurance for security and privacy management, but the reviewed sources do not provide pay, conditions, worker voice, or contractor protections. Security certifications are not treated as workforce assurance; the score therefore reflects limited relevant disclosure.

1 + 0 + 0 + 0 = 1/10. Documented worker protections; missing disclosure is an evidence gap.

Employee and contractor labor conditions, annotation work and remedy outcomes were not established by the reviewed sources.

Pay & conditions0/3: Reviewed product and trust pages do not provide workforce pay or conditions evidence.
Worker voice & remedy0/3: No workforce voice/complaint outcome evidence is identified in these official sources.
Evidence & follow-through0/3: The listed security and privacy certifications don’t show workforce conditions or labor assurance.

Workers rubric ↗

Military ties

7/10Not established↑

No military-use policy or defense relationship is established in the reviewed sources.

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Manus’s product and Trust Center describe agent capabilities and security practices but do not identify military contracts or a binding military-use prohibition. The product’s cloud infrastructure and connected model providers remain distinct from its company-level relationships.

7 base + 0 safeguard adjustment = 7/10 (0 of 9 safeguard points; every 3 adds 1). No military relationship was established in the cited sources. This ranks above known defense ties without claiming a verified clean record.

Full customer, supplier, government, and underlying model-provider relationships require additional review.

Use restrictions0/4: Reviewed official product pages don’t confirm military-use restrictions.
Enforcement & oversight0/3: No military-specific enforcement, oversight or remedy is documented in reviewed sources.
Relationship disclosure0/2: No defense customer or operational military relationship is disclosed in reviewed product and trust pages.

Reviewed official sources don’t show a defense contract, customer, or military deployment.

Military rubric ↗

BDS targets

Not listed↑

Manus is not named in the two reviewed BNC target lists; it currently states that it resumed independent operations.

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Manus’s September 2026 statement says it resumed independent operations after its prior Meta separation. The BNC lists checked here do not name Manus; this does not inherit Meta’s company finding and is not an endorsement.

This is limited to the two official BNC campaign sources; it does not cover every local campaign, supplier, investment, or future change.

All sources