The Download: testing new AI agent Manus, and Waabi’s virtual robotruck ambitions

Since the general AI agent Manus was launched last week, it has spread online like wildfire. And not just in China, where it was developed by the Wuhan-based startup Butterfly Effect. It’s made its way into the global conversation, with some even dubbing it “the second DeepSeek”. Manus claims to be the world's first general AI agent, building off multiple AI models and agents to act autonomously on a wide range of tasks. Despite all the hype, very few people have had a chance to use it. MIT Technology Review was able to obtain access to Manus. Here’s what we made of it. —Caiwei Chen Waabi says its virtual robotrucks are realistic enough to prove the real ones are safe The news: Canadian robotruck startup Waabi says its super-realistic virtual simulation is now accurate enough to prove the safety of its driverless big rigs without having to run them for miles on real roads. How it did it: The company uses a digital twin of its real-world robotrucks, loaded up with real sensor d ... Read full article.