It is manipulation, but that doesn't mean you can't make money off of it. This company is in some financial doo doo, and risk delistement if they dont get the share price up by April. As a result, they're having a stockholders meeting in February (proposed anyway) to vote on a potential reverse stock split, so that they can meet Nasdaq requirements. Long story short, the timing is pretty atrocious if you plan on going long for a short period of time.
There is no reason for this share price to go up like it did except for the fact that someone is screwing with the price. The stock is not making any *large* moves anytime soon, at least until after the split (which imo is a foregone conclusion). Charts are great but charts are not crystal balls. If I were you i'd be out at .50 cents for a cool profit. Holding out for more is crazy talk imo.
MVIS hardly has a leg to stand on right now. The company is going through some restructuring as it is,and just trying to get back on its feet. Big mover? No. Even with all that volume it swung a good 25%(ish) before closing a mere 7% higher. Also if you check momentum indicators (MACD in this example), there was no sharp increase anywhere. All in all timing is indeed bad for a "big" move. You're lucky to get a swing at all, so i'd take it if i was in at .35
EDIT: Also consider that once that stock price moves above a dollar, big gains will be a lot harder to get due to the obvious increase in price. Instead of 10 cent swings you'll need a good 20-30 cent swings. Again consider that once that reverse split goes through, if it goes through, investors could very well jump ship, leaving you holding a not-so-liquid bag. The recent price action is probably ppl trying to make money before their stocks get split and the beast becomes more immovable.
Market Data 
Markets 
AI
