The best Instinct alternatives

If you're looking past Instinct because you need help with work, Cicada is open to sign up today and built for it. Text it on iMessage or WhatsApp, add it to your group chats, mention it in Slack or email it, and it works in 1,000+ apps with a permission you set on each. It isn't the one for groceries and gifts.

What it is

AI agents you text on iMessage and WhatsApp, mention in Slack or email, and add to your group chats, where they keep every message and file and follow up on what people promised.

Where it works

iMessage and WhatsApp (one-to-one and group chats), Slack, email and a web app

What it costs

300 free credits to start with a card at sign-up, then $25 for 200 credits when you run low, or plans from $99 a month. Credits are shared across the workspace and roll over.

Worth knowing

Built for work rather than personal shopping and errands, and phone calls are switched off for now.

The closest to Instinct with no waitlist: a free assistant with its own number and email address that makes phone calls and uses a browser to book and buy for you, checking with you first.

What it is

A free personal assistant with its own number and email address, phone calls both ways and a browser it uses for you.

Where it works

iMessage, RCS, WhatsApp, Telegram, phone calls and its own email address

What it costs

Free with weekly limits; Cloud Mac $95 a month; VIP by invitation

Worth knowing

One Pally per person, it reads meeting recordings rather than joining calls, and it trains on your data unless you opt out.

A proactive assistant in iMessage, WhatsApp and Telegram with a free plan, and Poke Human, which hands real-world tasks to a real person.

What it is

A personal assistant you text in iMessage, WhatsApp or Telegram, that connects to your email, calendar and apps and gets in touch first.

Where it works

iMessage, WhatsApp and Telegram

What it costs

Free; Pro $19 a month; Ultra $199 a month, which adds Poke Human, a real person for calls and orders

Worth knowing

A personal assistant for one phone number; its FAQ doesn't describe group chats or team use, and its maker is joining Cognition.

Meta's free agent for the shopping Instinct is good at, through the Shopify catalog, Shop Pay and PayPal, in its app and WhatsApp, if you're in the US, Canada, Japan or Singapore.

What it is

Meta's personal AI agent, in its own app and in WhatsApp, that keeps working toward your goals after you close the app.

Where it works

The Muse app (iOS and Android), muse.ai and WhatsApp one-to-one

What it costs

Free for most use, with paid subscriptions for more; in the US and Canada, and since late October in Japan and Singapore

Worth knowing

One-to-one only (no group chats or iMessage that we could find), and your chats train Meta's models unless you opt out.

If you're in the US and pay for Claude: a proactive agent that briefs you each morning and can buy through Link and Shop Pay with a one-time card for each purchase. It has a waitlist too.

What it is

Anthropic's proactive agent in its own app: a morning brief, then a check of your apps every few hours.

Where it works

Its own app on iOS and Android, and claude.ai on the web

What it costs

Included in Claude Pro ($20 a month), Max ($100) and Ultra ($200), sharing their usage limits; US only, by waitlist

Worth knowing

US-only waitlist, you message it in its own app rather than your texts, and it isn't on Team or Enterprise plans yet.

An assistant you can text in iMessage or SMS today, with Slack, Gmail and a meeting notetaker, if your errands are mostly email and calendar.

What it is

An AI assistant you text, mention in Slack or email, with a meeting notetaker and a Chrome extension.

Where it works

iMessage and SMS, Slack, email, meetings and a Chrome extension

What it costs

Free to try with $50 of credits for 7 days; Team from $49.99 a month for every active user, credits pooled; Enterprise priced on request

Worth knowing

No WhatsApp that we could find, every active user is billed, and its docs say approvals apply in shared Slack threads, not in DMs, iMessage or SMS.

If you already pay for ChatGPT Pro: an always-on agent with its own cloud computer and browser, which can sign in to supported sites with your saved passwords without the model seeing them.

What it is

OpenAI's always-on agents inside ChatGPT, each with a cloud computer of its own, launched in September 2026.

Where it works

ChatGPT on desktop, web and mobile, Slack and Microsoft Teams; texting (iMessage or RCS, one-to-one) in a US beta for some Pro users since 28 October

What it costs

Included with ChatGPT Pro (from $100 a month) and Business Premium seats; Enterprise in beta

Worth knowing

One primary dot per person today, texting only in a one-to-one US beta for some Pro users (no group messages), and it needs a $100-a-month plan to start.