Instinct was the buzziest AI agent around — can it survive Muse?

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Instinct AI is an impressive assistant, but the pressure from OpenAI and Meta is officially on.

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In August, the startup got its AI agent to market with an unusual playbook: invite-only, no marketing, and barely so much as a website. And yet, Instinct quickly became the buzziest thing in AI, garnering praise for its straightforward, text message-based interface and its ability to handle chores like booking DMV appointments and sending follow-up emails.

Then Muse arrived, followed not long after by Dots. The same products, more or less, from two far more powerful companies.

With Big Tech players suddenly in the mix, it was looking dubious that the startup’s buzzy launch could keep it ahead of the competition. But in my own testing, Instinct has held its own against the other two agents, handling online tasks about as well as a robot can. And Instinct’s founder, Noah Shinn, is unfazed by the rising competition.

“AI assistants are all we know,” Shinn tells me over email. While OpenAI and Meta build AI products for a range of customers, Shinn believes Instinct’s focus sets it apart. “We have been solely focused on building a personal assistant for everyday life that just gets it.”