Meta has integrated Manus into its wider automation strategy, launching a local-first AI app for macOS and Windows that emphasises security and direct machine access, in a move that challenges OpenAI’s desktop ambitions.
Meta has moved Manus onto the desktop, giving the AI agent startup a clearer role in the company’s wider automation push. The app, which followed Meta’s December 2025 acquisition of Manus, arrived in mid-March 2026 on macOS and Windows and centres on a feature called “My Computer” that is designed to manage local files and carry out tasks on the user’s machine rather than routing every action through the cloud.
That local-first approach is the main difference between Manus and many earlier AI tools. According to the reports and the Manus desktop documentation, the app can read and edit files, launch applications, run command-line instructions and use local development tools. It can also work with hardware resources on the machine itself, including GPUs, which broadens its usefulness for coding and more technical workflows.
Security and control remain part of the pitch. Manus says each command requires explicit user approval, a safeguard meant to reassure users and IT teams that the agent cannot act without oversight. That matters because one of the biggest objections to cloud-based AI systems has been the handling of sensitive documents and internal processes, especially in enterprise environments where data residency and access control are closely scrutinised.
The timing places Meta in direct competition with OpenAI’s desktop ambitions. OpenAI has outlined plans for a unified macOS application that would bring ChatGPT, Codex and the Atlas browser into a single interface, although early user reaction has been mixed. Manus, by contrast, is already available on both macOS and Windows, giving Meta a broader desktop reach as it tries to turn AI from a browser feature into a system-level assistant.
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