Instinct Raises $250M to Compete with Meta in AI Assistants

The invitation-only assistant Instinct, led by 23-year-old Noah Shinn, has secured $250 million at a valuation of $2.5 billion and is reportedly in discussions to reach $10 billion. Its limited rollout, academic origins, and rapid scaling position it against Meta and its agent Muse, amid technical constraints, abundant capital, and public rivalries.

Meta Leverages Computing Power and Muse, Instinct Faces Latencies

Meta benefits from substantial resources in computing and liquidity to support its AI agent, which provides a significant operational advantage. Instinct, on the other hand, is free but occasionally experiences notable delays due to high demand and relies on funding from its investors. Both assistants are now competing for the top spot, with no clear winner emerging at this time. Mark Zuckerberg explained on Threads that Muse was chosen for safety and security reasons regarding AI. A source close to the matter noted that practical checks were necessary, particularly to ensure that Muse follows instructions and does not make purchases without authorization. Muse was launched a few weeks after Instinct and quickly reached the top of the App Store.

Fundraising and Ambitions for a $10 Billion Valuation

Instinct has raised $250 million for a valuation of $2.5 billion, in addition to $100 million obtained previously. The startup is reportedly in discussions for a new funding round aiming for a $10 billion valuation. The app, which went viral among Silicon Valley insiders during the summer, was launched by invitation, initially to investors. Instinct opted for a minimalist website and did not release a launch video, setting itself apart from typical promotional practices.

Early Adoption and Word-of-Mouth in Investor Circles

Venture capitalists have shared their experiences on social media of an AI agent performing tasks for them, while discussion groups quickly became animated around access to the tool. Noah Shinn praised the uses of early testers in a post on X on August 26, citing grocery shopping and subscription cancellations. This dynamic occurs in a context where competition in AI is evolving from simple chatbots to assistants capable of performing concrete tasks like bookings or planning.

Scientific Foundations Established Before GPT-4 and Praised by Professors

Shortly after the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022, Ashwin Gopinath assembled a team including Noah Shinn to explore ways to improve AI agents. Within three months, they wrote a paper presented at NeurIPS, describing Reflexion, a technique that allows an agent to learn from its failures and interactions. Gopinath believes that Instinct's success could draw from a similar approach. Arjun Guha points out that the foundation of this method was already present in 2023 in a paper by a second-year student, which is rare at that level. Steven Holtzen describes Shinn as a quiet, hardworking student who asks many questions and is capable of conducting research with little supervision. Shinn has co-authored papers on following instructions, using tools, and code generation.

From Sierra to the Creation of Instinct

After leaving Northeastern in 2023, Noah Shinn joined Sierra in San Francisco, a company developing customer support agents led by Bret Taylor, who is also the president of OpenAI. There, he worked as a researcher on several flagship products, receiving praise from Taylor. Shinn continued to write papers on instruction execution, tool usage, and code. He left Sierra in September 2025 to focus on Instinct, which was quietly launched during the summer.

Direct Competition with Meta and Tensions with Funds

Instinct now faces off against Meta, whose Mark Zuckerberg announced the goal of creating a personal superintelligence, internally known as Hatch, aimed at practical uses like shopping. Instinct has demonstrated that a standout AI assistant can emerge outside of major tech companies. The rivalry has also manifested publicly: Meta's AI head, Alexandr Wang, nicknamed Instinct "Insect" and touted Muse's speed, a jab to which Noah Shinn responded with a smiley. Shinn's competitive temperament, already noted in high school, was evident when he learned that two of his main investors were funding Town, backed by Andreessen Horowitz. Following his complaint, Index Ventures and Conviction reportedly withdrew their funding from that company, according to Upstarts Media. A spokesperson for Instinct stated they could not confirm others' opinions, while Conviction, Index Ventures, and Town's leader, Jean-Denis Greze, did not respond to requests for comment.