Instinct, a San Francisco start-up building a personal AI agent that carries out everyday tasks for its users, raised $1bn in a Series C round at a $10bn valuation, the company said on 28 September 2026.
Sequoia Capital, Benchmark and Coatue invested in the round. The company did not name a lead investor. The Information had reported earlier in September that Instinct was in talks to raise the money, according to TechCrunch.
The valuation is four times the level of Instinct's previous round. Founder Noah Shinn told The Wall Street Journal in August that the company had raised $250m at a $2.5bn valuation, Reuters reported.
“We're building Instinct to be the best personal agent that can handle the deeply personal nuances of everyday life.”Noah Shinn, Founder, Instinct
What Instinct does
Instinct was founded in 2025 by Shinn, who previously worked at Sierra, the AI customer-service company run by Bret Taylor, according to Reuters.
Users reach Instinct's agent by text message or phone call rather than through an app. The agent uses its own phone number and computer to act on a user's behalf, and can plan trips, book travel and restaurant tables, buy groceries and tickets, pay bills, cancel subscriptions and do research. A newer concierge feature phones businesses that do not offer online booking to make appointments, and a so-called trusted person network lets agents coordinate plans between friends, TechCrunch reported.
The service is still in invite-only early access, which began in August 2026. Instinct has not shared user numbers or other growth figures. TechCrunch noted that the company's first privacy policy was criticised as too broad and has since been updated. According to Reuters, Instinct said it was adding privacy protections such as isolated sandboxes and short-lived local credentials, as well as a system to detect hallucinations in its agents' responses.
A fast run of funding
The Series C came weeks after the previous round. The publication also reported that Shinn is 23 years old.
The company did not say how it would use the new $1bn. Shinn said the funding would help it bring Instinct to more people and continue building personal AI. He declined interview requests from TechCrunch.
Competition for personal agents
Instinct is entering a market where large technology companies are also building assistants that take actions for users. TechCrunch pointed to Meta's AI assistant, Muse, which offers similar features and connects to Meta's social apps, including Instagram direct messages, Facebook Groups and Marketplace listings. Muse has reached the top of US app store charts and has been downloaded millions of times, TechCrunch reported.
Reuters attributed the jump in Instinct's valuation to investor interest in agentic AI, software that completes tasks on its own rather than only answering questions.
Company website: instinct.com