Meta’s Muse AI Agent Reaches No. 2 on the U.S. App Store

Meta’s new consumer AI agent Muse has climbed to No. 2 on Apple’s U.S. App Store, giving the company an early sign of consumer interest as it pushes into agentic AI.

Market intelligence firm Sensor Tower estimates that Muse has generated more than 83,000 U.S. iOS downloads since launching Tuesday. The app is currently limited to the United States, although Muse is also available through the web and WhatsApp, which are not included in the mobile download estimate.

The launch has also attracted attention on Wall Street. J.P. Morgan upgraded Meta after the launch of Muse, citing the company’s growing consumer AI ambitions.

Muse is climbing despite a slower start than other Meta apps

Muse’s early numbers trail some of Meta’s biggest consumer launches. Threads recorded more than 4.3 million U.S. downloads on its first day, while the Meta AI app generated about 108,000 U.S. downloads during its debut, according to the source.

ChatGPT also grew faster when its iPhone app launched, reaching more than half a million U.S. installs in less than a week. Muse, however, continues to move up Apple’s rankings, rising from No. 4 on Wednesday to No. 2.

Its Android performance has been more modest so far. Muse ranked No. 338 in Google Play’s Productivity category, while Android download estimates were not yet available.

Meta is betting that consumer AI will become agentic

Muse represents Meta’s bet that people will increasingly use AI systems that do more than answer questions. Instead, agents will work across services and take actions on a user’s behalf.

Meta is entering an increasingly crowded market for AI assistants designed to carry out tasks for users. The source identifies Instinct as one of Muse’s most notable emerging competitors, alongside agent products from companies including Google and Anthropic.

Instinct, valued at $2.5 billion after raising $350 million, has been rapidly adding capabilities. Founder Noah Shinn recently announced that Instinct agents can receive their own email addresses, allowing them to handle tasks that involve creating accounts and communicating with businesses.

The startup has also been building ways for agents to interact with other users’ agents. Shinn has described new social coordination capabilities for Instinct, alongside integrations with services including Stripe and 1Password.

Privacy could shape Muse adoption

Muse’s success will depend partly on whether consumers are comfortable giving Meta’s agent access to the personal information required to perform tasks effectively. The company’s history means those questions will likely face particular scrutiny.

Meta’s past includes the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data scandal, as well as years of regulatory disputes over how Facebook handled user information.

In 2011, Facebook settled Federal Trade Commission charges over privacy promises. Eight years later, the company agreed to a $5 billion FTC settlement over privacy practices. Regulatory scrutiny continued in 2023, when the FTC proposed restrictions on Meta’s handling and monetisation of youth data.

Those concerns arrive as Muse asks users to trust Meta with an agent designed to act across their digital lives. Still, its rapid rise to No. 2 on the U.S. App Store suggests that a meaningful number of consumers are willing to test what Meta believes could become a major new category of personal computing.