Q&A with Instinct founder Noah Shinn on Instinct's business model, privacy, safety and security, securing compute, Big Tech competition, and more

The cost to serve each user with a proactive AI agent falls significantly, nearing $1 per month.

Noah Shinn, founder of Instinct, discussed his company's personal agent product in a podcast. Instinct is growing at 10% daily through an invite-only system. The company is navigating a competitive landscape against Big Tech, with a limited window of opportunity to establish itself. Shinn highlighted the significant compute resources required for such AI agents and the challenges of user trust, particularly when handling financial information like credit cards. He also touched upon the business model, privacy, safety, security, and the future of interfaces with the rise of proactive agents that pursue user goals. Instinct has already processed $1 billion in transaction volume for travel and reservations.

Instinct's rapid, invite-only growth to 10% daily expansion indicates a strong market demand for capable personal AI agents, despite the compute crunch and Big Tech competition. The company's ability to secure compute resources and build user trust, especially concerning sensitive data and financial transactions, will be critical for its long-term viability and potential to disrupt existing internet structures. The $1 billion in travel and reservation transaction volume demonstrates early adoption and the potential for AI agents to fundamentally alter how users interact with online services.

The emergence of personal agents like Instinct signals a potential shift towards a more consolidated internet experience, where a single interface manages diverse tasks. This presents both an opportunity for innovation and a challenge to established players who may resist this change. The "compute crunch" and the significant cost to serve users, even with recent decreases, underscore the capital-intensive nature of developing and scaling advanced AI, impacting the competitive dynamics and the types of companies that can thrive in this space.