Instinct has raised $1 billion in a Series C round at a $10 billion valuation. The round underscores investor interest in consumer AI agents that perform tasks beyond conversation.
The firm uses SMS and texting to interact with users.
The quick successive raises reflect interest in AI agents that handle tasks such as booking travel, making purchases, paying bills and ordering groceries.
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Meta, Xiaomi, Apple and two AI labs all moved major hardware or model updates in the same week. The activity centers on 2 nm mobile chips and expanded smart-glasses hardware.
Meta allows users to opt out of using visual data from its smart glasses for AI training. The change prevents images from being reviewed by contractors and addresses ongoing privacy concerns.
Meta revealed the Charm device, a Tamagotchi-style keychain gadget running Muse AI, at its Connect event. The product packs real-time voice and avatar features into a portable form that activates via fingerprint sensor.
Meta Connect 2026 has begun, with Mark Zuckerberg’s keynote set for 7PM ET on September 23. The event is expected to highlight AI, smart glasses, and possible privacy-focused hardware amid ongoing camera concerns.
Amazon has added persistent memory and 24/7 automation workflows to Seller Assistant along with a plugin for Amazon Quick and Anthropic’s Claude. The changes let sellers run Amazon-specific tasks inside the AI tools they already use while keeping data inside Amazon infrastructure.
