New AI Agent Instinct Draws Billion-Dollar Interest — and Security Warnings
A Wired writer tested the invite-only AI agent Instinct, which manages email, calendar and bookings via iMessage and WhatsApp, while users report serious privacy and security risks.
A technology writer who recently left her staff job at Wired tested several AI assistants in search of one that could genuinely simplify her daily life. She first gave Claude Cowork access to her email and calendar, but found it behaved more like a standard chatbot with extra tools than a true digital assistant.
She found more promise in Instinct, an invite-only AI agent that operates through iMessage and WhatsApp and connects to a user's email, calendar and messaging apps. The company launched its private beta in February and has already raised $350 million; according to The Information, it is now in talks to raise another $1 billion, which would push its valuation to $10 billion. Meanwhile, Meta's newly launched assistant Muse has become the most downloaded free app on Apple's App Store, with more than 900,000 downloads, despite launching with a serious security flaw that reportedly could have let attackers gain broad access to victims' Mac computers.
Booking flights and dinners
The writer described using Instinct to book restaurant reservations in Venice, including contacting small spots via WhatsApp, and later to handle a more complex problem: the agent discovered that Alaska Airlines had moved one of her flights up by 90 minutes, which entitled her to a full refund. Instinct canceled the ticket, secured a refund of roughly $550, and rebooked her return flight to San Francisco.
The risks involved
But she also flagged significant risks. Some users found Instinct retained copies of their inboxes even after being disconnected. One venture capitalist was banned from Resy after the agent pinged the reservation platform's system roughly 200 times an hour, and another investor deleted the app after concluding it could easily be phished. Instinct's terms of service also allow the company to use some user conversations to train its AI models. The writer herself lost $64 after the agent canceled a delayed DoorDash order without securing a refund, despite instructions to cancel only if a refund was possible.
Despite these concerns — and despite Instinct once correctly flagging a phishing email disguised as a friend's barbecue invitation — the writer said she plans to keep using the agent. The company did not respond to Wired's request for comment.
