According to TechCrunch, Instinct founder Noah Shinn said on a podcast that travel accounts for more than half of transactions on the invite-only AI agent platform. He also said the platform is approaching $1 billion in annual transactions, though he did not explain how that figure is calculated.
Shinn argued that AI agents can improve on traditional travel booking interfaces by letting users make urgent requests in natural language, such as needing to be in New York that night. He also suggested agents could transform restaurant reservations by monitoring availability and prioritising special occasions, a comment that drew criticism from observers who noted agents could fabricate occasions and that restaurants may value regular local patrons.
The company recently raised $1 billion in Series C funding at a $10 billion valuation from Sequoia Capital, Benchmark Capital, and Coatue. The 14-member startup competes with Meta's Muse and Khosla-backed Wajo in the personal agent space, according to the report.