Meta's new AI agent Muse is spreading rapidly with a message that it reduces users' spending and effectively "makes $1,000" for them. It is seen as creating a new trend in the personal AI assistant market by going beyond answering questions and handling real-life tasks such as renegotiating insurance premiums, canceling subscriptions and requesting refunds.

On Sept. 22, Business Insider reported that Meta Chief AI Officer Alexander Wang promoted Muse as being able to review users' finances, find expenses that can be cut and handle some tasks directly in the background.

Since its launch on Sept. 8, Muse has been introduced as an AI agent that takes on cost-cutting tasks such as renegotiating insurance premiums, canceling unused subscriptions, searching for online discounts and requesting refunds. Wang launched the hashtag #MuseMoneyChallenge on X, formerly Twitter, and encouraged users to share real examples of savings.

Wang stressed that Muse "makes $1,000" almost immediately, but its actual operation is closer to reducing existing spending or finding missed refund money than creating new income.

Users are also sharing savings cases. Startup founder Joseph DeBoye said he used Muse to compare auto insurance again and found a plan that was $3,500 cheaper per year than his previous one.

Another user reported that Muse found a monthly book subscription service the user had been unable to cancel for more than a year, and the user received a refund for past payments along with canceling the subscription.

Coinbase product manager Nick Prince said Muse helped him avoid add-on sales pitches and high fees at a car dealership, saving him $1,250. Another user introduced a case in which Muse found a Verizon gift card worth about $200 that the user had not used.

Still, it is a variable that Meta employees participated significantly in the early spread. Among posts responding to Wang's challenge were many cases in which Meta employees cut costs by lowering mobile phone bills, canceling insurance and returning IKEA furniture. Meta's communications team was reported to have not immediately responded to a request for comment.

Market reaction came quickly. Muse was reported to have risen to No. 1 in download rankings on Apple's U.S. App Store and Google Play, beating TikTok and ChatGPT. Meta says users of its services, including WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook, total about 3.9 billion.

Muse is drawing attention because its role differs from existing generative AI. While services such as ChatGPT and Anthropic's Claude mainly answer questions or provide information, Muse aims to be a personal assistant-type AI that performs actual online tasks based on user requests.

The invite-only AI agent Instinct, which recently drew attention in Silicon Valley, also gained notice for taking on real tasks such as booking accommodations, ordering daily necessities and scheduling dental appointments. AI agents are expanding from simple conversational tools into software that takes action.

But constraints are also emerging over how far AI agents can act within real services. Companies may find it burdensome for AI to access phone lines or online marketplaces at scale.

Amazon blocked Muse on Sept. 21 from ordering items from its shopping cart. Amazon was reported to have judged that purchases in this way violate its website terms of service.

Whether Muse's early popularity leads to longer-term service adoption depends on the scope of tasks AI can actually perform and how willing external platforms are to accept it. Features that directly cut users' spending are a strong advantage, but how autonomously AI agents can act on other companies' services remains an unresolved challenge.