Company intelligence

Instinct

Invite-only personal AI assistant, operated via text and phone calls, that books, buys, and manages tasks on a user's behalf; valuation rocketed from ~$100M to $2.5B in weeks after a $250M Series B in August 2026, with reports in mid-September it's in early talks for up to $10B.

AI infraSan Francisco, California, USAFounded 2026Founders: Noah ShinnWebsite ↗
Last verified Sep 16, 2026

Key Metrics

Valuation
$2.5B
As of Sep 16, 2026Value Add Pulse research
Total funding
$350M
As of Sep 16, 2026Value Add Pulse research

Company Snapshot

Instinct is a AI infra company, based in San Francisco, California, USA, founded 2026 by Noah Shinn. Latest valuation $2.5B (As of Sep 16, 2026, Value Add Pulse research). Total funding $350M (As of Sep 16, 2026).

Recent changes

  1. Sep 10, 2026Raised up to $1B at a up to $10B valuationRumored The Information
  2. Sep 10, 2026Instinct Eyes $1B Raise As Compute Costs Bite Pulse story
  3. Aug 27, 2026Instinct Hits $2.5B Valuation on $350M Raised Pulse story
  4. Aug 26, 2026Raised $250M Series B at a $2.5B valuation TechCrunch
  5. Aug 26, 2026First reported total funding: $350M TechCrunch
Earlier changes (4)
  1. Aug 26, 2026New investor: Index Ventures TechCrunch
  2. Aug 26, 2026New investor: Benchmark TechCrunch
  3. Aug 26, 2026Instinct's Valuation Rockets to $2.5B in Weeks Pulse story
  4. Aug 2026First reported valuation: $2.5BRumored The Information

Funding History

2 events · sources dated per row
DateEventAmountValuationInvestorsSource
Sep 10, 2026funding roundRumoredup to $1Bup to $10B
The Information
Aug 26, 2026Series B$250M$2.5B
Index VenturesBenchmark23-year-old Noah Shinn
outlined = lead
TechCrunch

Investors

Latest Pulse

  1. Instinct Eyes $1B Raise As Compute Costs BitePersonal AI assistant Instinct is in talks to raise as much as $1 billion at a valuation up to $10 billion, weeks after its last round, as compute costs strain its free-to-use product.
  2. The Startups Building AI Agents That Shop for YouVenture capital is fanning out across every layer of agentic commerce at once -- multipurpose shopping agents, deal-finding assistants, and the payment plumbing agents need to transact -- with real usage and real failures alike.
  3. Instinct Hits $2.5B Valuation on $350M RaisedInstinct, the personal AI assistant built by 23-year-old founder Noah Shinn, has raised $350 million in total including a $250 million Series B co-led by Index Ventures and Benchmark at a $2.5 billion valuation.
  4. Instinct's Valuation Rockets to $2.5B in WeeksInstinct, a four-month-old AI assistant startup led by 23-year-old Noah Shinn, raised $250 million at a $2.5 billion valuation co-led by Index Ventures and Benchmark, up fivefold from $500 million just weeks earlier.
  5. Instinct's Powerful AI Assistant Raises Privacy ConcernsInstinct's ambient AI assistant, which reads across a user's apps and messages to act proactively, is drawing privacy and security concerns over how much personal data it continuously accesses.

Coverage Timeline

newest first
  1. FUNDINGInstinct Eyes $1B Raise As Compute Costs Bite
  2. FUNDINGThe Startups Building AI Agents That Shop for You
  3. FUNDINGInstinct Hits $2.5B Valuation on $350M Raised
  4. FUNDINGInstinct's Valuation Rockets to $2.5B in Weeks
  5. AIInstinct's Powerful AI Assistant Raises Privacy Concerns

All Coverage

FUNDING

Instinct Eyes $1B Raise As Compute Costs Bite

FUNDING

The Startups Building AI Agents That Shop for You

FUNDING

Instinct Hits $2.5B Valuation on $350M Raised

FUNDING

Instinct's Valuation Rockets to $2.5B in Weeks

AI

Instinct's Powerful AI Assistant Raises Privacy Concerns

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Where these figures come from

Figures are labelled Reported (a source states it), Estimated, Derived (computed from other facts) or Rumored (in talks / unconfirmed). Rumors never replace a confirmed figure. Each figure keeps its own as-of date; history is preserved rather than overwritten.

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