In the bustling tech landscape of 2022, a new player emerged from Beijing—Monica, an innovative AI browser extension developed by Butterfly Effect Technology Co., Ltd. Founded by visionary CEO Xiao Hong and his team, including co-founder and chief scientist Ji Yichao, Monica was designed to be an all-in-one personal assistant that integrates various AI capabilities into one seamless tool.
Initially launched as a browser plugin, Monica quickly gained traction for its ability to chat with users, translate languages on-the-fly, generate content, and even create images—all powered by leading large language models. By mid-2024, it had amassed around four million users globally. This rapid growth can be attributed not only to its user-friendly interface but also to strategic moves like acquiring the ChatGPT for Google plugin in 2023.
The journey began when Xiao Hong founded Butterfly Effect in Wuhan's Optics Valley after completing his studies at Huazhong University of Science and Technology. His entrepreneurial spirit shone through early projects during university that laid the groundwork for future innovations. After establishing Nightingale Tech post-graduation—a company that successfully launched products serving millions—Xiao turned his attention towards creating Monica.
By March 2025, Monica unveiled Manus—the world’s first general-purpose AI agent—which aims to revolutionize how we interact with technology by enabling proactive task execution rather than mere reactive responses. With Manus outperforming similar models from OpenAI in benchmark tests like GAIA (Generalized Artificial Intelligence Assessment), it has sparked considerable interest both domestically and internationally.
Despite initial challenges breaking into overseas markets due to regulatory hurdles surrounding major foreign models in China—including Grok and Claude—Monica has strategically pivoted towards domestic deployment underpinned by partnerships with local giants such as Alibaba Cloud’s Tongyi Qianwen team.
As of now, while continuing its expansion efforts abroad particularly focusing on North America and East Asia where demand is surging rapidly among tech-savvy consumers seeking versatile digital assistants capable of managing diverse tasks—from travel planning to financial analysis—Monica stands poised at the forefront of artificial intelligence innovation.