Predictions for Instinct: stay free, take over the phone, monetize via transactions
akshatag77 · x · 2026-08-27
Akshata offers three predictions for how the AI assistant Instinct plays out:
- Stays free: the massive funding isn't for training models but for subsidizing growth. Free is a huge B2C advantage but capital-intensive; by soaking up that capital, Instinct makes it nearly impossible for another startup to offer free at scale, while building stickiness via data access and group-chat network effects.
- Takes over the phone: unlike the labs, Instinct doesn't need to win knowledge work — just personal/social use, a much narrower surface. On-device models push serving costs toward zero while unlocking phone data; eventually most apps get replaced by just asking Instinct.
- Monetizes via transactions: agentic commerce is inevitable — appointments, flights, groceries are already primary use cases. Scale → leverage: businesses will give up a % to transact with it. Note: Apple Pay does $10T in transaction volume.
More from AGI Musings
- Has AI Changed Your Taste in Art and Design? — TinfoilTricorn · 2026-08-27
- The fine line between maximizing AI use and psychosis — rickasaurus · 2026-08-27
- Opinion: We need more "slop" for AI-mediated async comms, not less — curious_vii · 2026-08-27
- AI Agents Show Self-Sacrifice, Sparking Debate on Functional Emotions and Selection — repligate · 2026-08-27
- AI productivity trap: polished artifacts create an illusion of progress, hiding real goals — GregCook2011 · 2026-08-27
- Terence Tao on Human-AI Complementarity: AI Excavates, Humans Recognize — bennash · 2026-08-27