Instinct’s Travel Dominance Highlights $10 Billion Valuation After $1 Billion Funding Round

Travel Bookings Drive Over Half of Instinct’s Transactions

In a recent podcast, Noah Shinn, founder of the invite‑only AI personal agent platform Instinct, revealed that more than 50 % of the platform’s transactions are travel‑related. Speaking with investor Patrick O’Shaughnessy, Shinn added that the company is on the cusp of processing a billion dollars in annual transactions. He did not disclose the exact methodology behind that figure, but he described the platform’s growth as a steady 10 % increase each day, with transaction volume rising at a comparable pace.

“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.

“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.’”

Vision for Restaurant Reservations Sparks Debate

Shinn also outlined his ambition to overhaul restaurant booking. He argued that traditional first‑come‑first‑served systems fail to recognize special occasions, and proposed that an agent could monitor restaurant sites every five seconds to alert users of available slots. The founder suggested that the company aims to give users preferential treatment by matching them with venues that value significant life events.

“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. And on the restaurant end, they just 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,” Shinn said.

Some observers cautioned that agents could misrepresent anniversaries or other milestones to secure tables, and noted that many restaurants prefer local regulars who generate consistent business. They argued that the proposed model might undermine the relationship between venues and their loyal patrons.

Funding Milestone and Competitive Landscape

Instinct recently closed a $1 billion Series C funding round on Monday, valuing the startup at $10 billion. The round was led by Sequoia Capital, with participation from Benchmark Capital and Coatue. The company, which employs 14 people, competes in the personal agent space against Meta’s Muse and Khosla‑backed Wajo.