Daily AI news, sourcedOfficial news, first rumor reports and substantive progress. Each entry keeps the information published at that time.
- YC-backed Instinct opens early access to a team of agents that monitors markets 24/7 for traders
Instinct, a five-person San Francisco startup listed by Y Combinator in its Winter 2026 batch, opened early access to a team of AI agents that scan thousands of markets, follow large positions and flag trades around the clock. Its claims of institutional-grade capability are the company's own and unverified, and details about its batch and product timing vary across sources.
- A roundup of AI agents that live in your text messages, per TechCrunch
TechCrunch surveys notable AI agents you can text like a contact — including Instinct and others for families, travel, and work — that remember context, connect to calendars and messaging apps, and complete tasks without a separate app. Examples include Caddy in iMessage/RCS and Fambot for family coordination.
- Text-message AI agent Instinct holds its own against Muse and Dots in hands-on testing, per The Verge
Instinct, a startup AI agent that launched in August invite-only with no marketing and became one of the most talked-about agents for its text-message interface and chores like booking DMV appointments, now faces similar agents Muse and Dots from far larger companies, The Verge reports. In the reviewer's testing, Instinct handled online tasks about as well as the two Big Tech rivals.
- Instinct brings its AI agent to group chats, including friends without accounts, per TechCrunch
TechCrunch reports that Instinct is launching group chats where friends can use its AI agent together to plan trips, organize carpools and coordinate events. The company says personal accounts stay separate and agents need permission before sharing information or taking action.
- Instinct founder says annualized transaction volume approaches $1 billion
Instinct founder Noah Shinn said the near-$1 billion annualized transaction volume is extrapolated from current transaction velocity, and that sensitive-credential linkage is being used as a measure of user trust.