Ji Yichao, cofounder and chief scientist of Manus, the AI startup acquired by Meta, has drawn a striking parallel between his own journey and that of Mark Zuckerberg, emphasizing their shared experience as college dropouts. In a post on X on Monday, Ji shared two photos—one showing himself working at a laptop and another featuring a young Zuckerberg in the same room, both seated at desks in what appears to be the famed "Facebook House" in Palo Alto, California. The house, originally rented by Zuckerberg in 2004 as he built Facebook from his dorm room, later became a hub for aspiring entrepreneurs and business students. Ji wrote, “21 years ago and 13 years ago, two dropouts in this same room set out on their own journeys. Today, those paths merge,” highlighting the symbolic significance of the moment. The 32-year-old Ji was the public face of Manus when it launched in March, introducing the company’s “general-purpose” AI agent capable of autonomously completing complex tasks. Meta announced the acquisition of Manus on Monday, with reports from the Wall Street Journal indicating the deal exceeded $2 billion. According to Chinese media reports, Ji began a computer science degree at Beijing Information Science and Technology University (BISTU) in 2010 but left to focus on entrepreneurship. He later returned to BISTU and graduated in 2018, as noted in a university blog. Manus did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. Ji’s story echoes a broader trend among tech leaders. Meta’s other major AI acquisition this year, Scale AI, was founded by Alexandr Wang, another college dropout. The list of influential tech figures who left college includes Microsoft co-founders Bill Gates and Paul Allen, Apple CEO Steve Jobs, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and others. Ji’s post arrives amid growing debate over the value of a college degree. Gen Z, in particular, is increasingly questioning whether the cost and time investment of higher education are justified—especially in a job market reshaped by artificial intelligence. Fei-Fei Li, a Stanford professor known as the “Godmother of AI,” recently stated that a formal degree matters less than it once did when hiring software engineers. Still, data from the New York Federal Reserve in April found that, on average, a college degree still provides long-term financial benefits—though the return depends heavily on the field of study. Manus was launched in March by Butterfly Effect, a Chinese AI product studio. The company relocated to Singapore in mid-2025 and reported surpassing $100 million in annual recurring revenue. Meta said it will continue to offer Manus’ subscription service as a standalone product while integrating its technology into its own platforms.