Instinct founder says travel accounts for over 50% of platform transactions

The founder of the viral AI agent Instinct said that more than 50% of the transactions processed on the platform are travel-related, giving the clearest picture yet of what people actually use the tool for. Noah Shinn made the comments in an interview with investor Patrick O'Shaughnessy on his podcast.

Travel, and a business nearing $1B

Shinn said the invite-only platform is approaching a billion dollars in annual transactions, though he did not specify how that figure is calculated. The platform is growing about 10% day by day, he added, with transaction volume increasing at a similar rate.

Asked about the travel share, Shinn drew a contrast with existing booking sites. Travel agencies and booking platforms, he said, unify different hotel chains, airlines and services into a single interface and present them well, letting a user check out immediately.

"People who are not on Instinct use travel agencies or sites to book hotels or flights. What is the benefit of that interface? They properly unify different hotel chains, airlines and services, and present them in a nice way for users, who can check out immediately," he said.

He argued that an agent-based interface offers a better experience, describing a user who says: "I need to be in New York tonight; it's urgent."

The restaurant reservations debate

Shinn also used the interview to float rethinking how restaurant reservations work. Most restaurants run on a first-come-first-serve basis that does not account for someone's special occasion, he said. An agent, he noted, can check a restaurant's site every five seconds and tell the user about available slots. He hinted that the company wants to reinvent reservations and give users preferential treatment.

"From the user's end, they want the reservation for a significant life event. And on the restaurant end, they want interesting people. They want special occasions. They want to cater to those rather than, maybe, the local person who keeps taking up a table once a night, and there's no sort of special event there," he said.

Observers pushed back on that idea. They pointed out that agents can lie about anniversaries and special occasions just to book a table, and that some restaurants prefer local patrons, since regulars bring more business to the venue.

Why it matters

The comments add new detail to what Instinct actually does in practice. Instinct 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.