Instinct’s Founder Says Travel Purchases Now Make Up the Majority of Platform Transactions

Noah Shinn, founder of the AI agent Instinct, has said that more than half of transactions on his platform are travel-related. The claim comes from a recent podcast interview with investor Patrick O’Shaughnessy, and it puts Instinct in the same lane as almost every other AI demo you have ever seen.

Shinn said the invite-only platform sees more than 50% of its transactions tied to travel, though he did not specify exactly how that percentage was calculated. He also told O’Shaughnessy that the platform is approaching a billion dollars in annual transactions, again without explaining the underlying math. Those two figures — the travel share and the revenue trajectory — are the core of Shinn’s public case for the company.

Shinn’s Case for Travel Agents

Shinn framed the comparison between traditional travel booking and what Instinct offers. He argued that conventional travel agencies and booking sites do a good job of unifying different hotel chains, airlines, and services, presenting them neatly to users who can check out immediately.

“People who are not on Instinct use travel agencies (or sites) to book hotels or flights. What’s the benefit of that interface? They properly unify different hotel chains, airlines, and services, and present them in a nice way for users, who have the option to check out immediately,” Shinn said.

He added that the platform is growing 10% day-by-day, with transaction volume increasing at a similar rate. That growth rate is a key figure in the story, since it suggests the company is expanding quickly even as it remains invite-only. The doubling time implied by 10% daily growth would be roughly seven days.

The Restaurant Reservation Problem

Shinn also addressed the restaurant reservation space, a second major area where Instinct operates. He said that most restaurants operate on a first-come-first-served system, which does not account for a diner’s special occasion.

“I think there is a better experience with Instinct or other interfaces where users can say ‘Hey, I need to be in New York tonight; it’s urgent,'” Shinn said.

He described how an agent could check restaurant sites every five seconds and inform the user about available slots. Shinn hinted that the company wants to reinvent reservations and give users preferential treatment.

“If you take restaurant reservations from scratch, from the user’s end, they want the reservation for a significant life event that they might have,” Shinn said. “And on the restaurant end, they just want they want interesting people. They want special occasions. They want to cater to those rather than, maybe, the local [person] who keeps, you know, taking up a table once a night [sic], and there’s no sort of special event there.”

Critics Point Out a Weak Spot

Not everyone agreed with Shinn’s framing. Some observers noted that agents can lie about anniversaries and special occasions just to book a table at a restaurant. They also said that some restaurants prefer local patrons as they are regulars and bring more business to the outlet.

These criticisms are worth keeping in mind alongside Shinn’s claims. They do not refute his numbers, but they do cast doubt on the assumption that every restaurant wants a special occasion over a regular customer. The concern is that an automated system might misrepresent a diner’s circumstances to secure a reservation, something Shinn acknowledged as a potential issue.

The Funding Round

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 is competing with Meta’s Muse and Khosla-backed Wajo in the personal agent space.

The funding round is notable because it values Instinct at $10 billion. That valuation gives the company a clear benchmark against its rivals, all of whom are also building personal agents but have not disclosed valuations.

What the Numbers Actually Mean

The 50% travel figure is the headline, but it is not a complete picture of the business. Shinn did not say how many total transactions the platform processes, so the 50% figure could represent a small number of large transactions or a large number of small ones. Without that context, the travel share is best understood as a directional signal rather than a precise measure of scale.

The 10% daily growth figure is more concrete. If transaction volume is increasing at a similar rate, that suggests the company is expanding its activity. At that pace, the platform’s transaction count would double roughly every seven days.

Comparing the Players

The table shows that Instinct is not alone in this space. Meta’s Muse and Khosla-backed Wajo are both in the personal agent field. Shinn’s company is the only one named here with a disclosed valuation, which makes it easier to compare its scale to the others. The $10 billion valuation places Instinct at the upper end of the personal agent market, at least among publicly reported figures.

The Bottom Line

Shinn’s claims are bold, and they are backed by a $10 billion valuation. Whether the 50% travel figure holds up to scrutiny is unclear, since Shinn did not specify how it was calculated.

What is clear is the direction of the market. Almost every AI demo shows a user sparring with an assistant to book travel, and Instinct is following that pattern closely. The company’s stated growth figures suggest it is expanding fast.

The restaurant reservation angle is riskier. The critics who pointed out that agents can lie about special occasions have a point, and the preference for local regulars at some restaurants is a complication. Shinn’s own framing acknowledges that restaurants value repeat customers, which complicates his argument that special occasions always win.

For now, the numbers are the story. A platform seeing more than 50% of its transactions as travel-related, growing 10% day-by-day, and approaching a billion dollars in annual transactions is a company worth watching.

Source material: “Instinct founder said more than 50% of transactions on the platform are travel-related,” TechCrunch.

AI agents · Instinct · restaurant reservations · travel tech · venture capital