Instinct vs LivePerson

Replika founder launches Wabi 2.0 AI assistant

Eugenia Kuyda, founder of the AI companion company Replika, has officially launched Wabi 2.0, a multiplayer personal AI assistant that functions as a messenger app. The launch is the evolution of Wabi, which initially launched in 2025 as a social platform for creating and sharing mini apps. The new version introduces agentic threads that automatically build custom apps, such as weight-loss trackers or event finders, based on user goals and connected accounts. Kuyda emphasizes the multithreaded, multiplayer design as a key differentiator, allowing shared group chats where users can collaborate with AI and each other. Wabi is free for now, with no settled business model, and the company is in talks to raise additional funds. The launch targets a wave of new personal AI assistants like Meta's Muse and Instinct, positioning Wabi to capitalize on the maturation of AI technology since Kuyda first pitched her original idea for Luka at TechCrunch Disrupt 12 years ago.

• Eugenia Kuyda launched Wabi 2.0 for all users on October 19, 2026.
• Wabi 2.0 is a multiplayer personal AI assistant that functions as a messenger app.
• Wabi raised a $20 million pre-seed round in 2025.

Instinct AI assistant raises privacy and security concerns

Instinct, a San Francisco startup building a messaging-based personal AI assistant, is in private testing but has drawn praise for its capabilities and criticism over privacy and security. Testers reported that the assistant connects to email, messaging, calendar, device audio, location and screen data, can act on users' behalf, and that its Terms of Service grant a broad “perpetual and irrevocable” license to user materials (including for model training). Reported issues include retained plain-text email data after disconnect, inability to delete some records, sending emails without explicit confirmation, and susceptibility to phishing. The startup is led by Noah Shinn, reportedly operated by Spear Street Technology, and has drawn investment from Kleiner Perkins and Conviction; TechCrunch reports the company is operating in stealth. Instinct’s team has not publicly responded to the complaints cited in the article.

• Instinct is a San Francisco-based AI personal assistant startup currently in private testing.
• Instinct’s agent connects to users’ email, messaging apps, calendar and device data (audio, location, screen, etc.) and can act on users’ behalf.
• Instinct’s Terms of Service reportedly grant a broad “perpetual and irrevocable” license to access and use user materials, including for training models.

Instinct AI Hits $2.5B Valuation in Weeks

Instinct, a personal AI assistant founded by Noah Shinn (author of the Reflexion paper), jumped in valuation from roughly $100M to $2.5B within weeks after successive funding rounds led by Kleiner Perkins, Benchmark and Index Ventures. The product remains an invite-only, free beta with no disclosed revenue or user numbers; investors are betting it could become a “personal AI gateway.” The article highlights the technical moat as hiding complex agent self-correction and orchestration behind a simple text/call interface, and raises concerns about the deep permissions such agents require (inbox, payment methods, calendars), recommending spending caps and confirmation gates as mitigations.

• Instinct’s valuation rose to $2.5 billion after funding rounds led by Benchmark and Index Ventures.
• Early August round led by Kleiner Perkins pushed valuation past $500 million; prior early funding valued it around $100 million.
• Total funding raised is reported at around $350 million; Instinct remains in a free, invite-only beta with no disclosed revenue or user numbers.

8-K Financial Filing Analysis for LivePerson (2026-09-04)

On September 4, 2026, LivePerson, Inc. completed its acquisition by SoundHound AI, Inc., becoming an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of SoundHound. Under the terms of the merger, each share of LivePerson common stock was converted into the right to receive 0.4673 shares of SoundHound Class A common stock, while shares held via the Tel-Aviv Stock Exchange Clearing House were converted into $3.31 in cash per share. Concurrently, LivePerson satisfied its First and Second Lien Secured Notes due 2029 through an aggregate distribution of 36,894,839 SoundHound shares and $5,848,000 in cash. Following the closing, LivePerson delisted its common stock from Nasdaq, suspended its SEC reporting obligations, and its entire board of directors resigned.

• SoundHound completed the acquisition of LivePerson on September 4, 2026, converting each LivePerson share into 0.4673 shares of SoundHound Class A common stock (or $3.31 in cash for TASE shares).
• LivePerson's 2029 First and Second Lien Secured Notes were fully resolved via an aggregate issuance of 36,894,839 SoundHound Class A shares plus $5,848,000 in cash.
• LivePerson filed for Nasdaq delisting (Form 25) and deregistration under the Exchange Act (Form 15), accompanied by the resignation of its entire board of directors.

LivePerson has been acquired by SoundHound AI, creating a world-leading Omnichannel Conversational AI powerhouse.

A banner on the LivePerson blog announces that LivePerson has been acquired by SoundHound AI, creating a world-leading Omnichannel Conversational AI powerhouse, with a link to the SoundHound newsroom announcement.

SoundHound AI Completes LivePerson Acquisition

SoundHound AI has finalized its acquisition of LivePerson, a deal first announced in April 2026 with an implied enterprise value of $250 million, and completed on September 4, 2026. The merger combines SoundHound's voice agentic AI with LivePerson's digital messaging infrastructure to create a unified omnichannel conversational AI platform, integrated into SoundHound's OASYS system. The combined entity now serves 25 of the Fortune 100 and holds over 750 patents. John Collins has been appointed CFO. LivePerson's debt was retired at closing, leaving a debt-free balance sheet. SoundHound projects over $500 million in future revenue from existing customers, citing Gartner's forecast of $985 billion in enterprise agentic AI software spending by 2030.

• SoundHound AI completed its acquisition of LivePerson on September 4, 2026.
• The deal was announced in April 2026 with an implied enterprise value of $250 million.
• John Collins was appointed as the new CFO of the combined company.