• Home
• Technology

Meta’s new Muse app is quickly drawing attention from U.S. users, surpassing 83,000 iPhone downloads in the country within days of launch and climbing to No. 2 among the most popular apps on the U.S. App Store, according to early data from app intelligence firm Sensor Tower.

Fast rise despite a modest launch

Muse moved from fourth place on Wednesday to second the following day, showing continued interest. Still, its launch trails some previous Meta releases: Threads recorded more than 4.3 million U.S. downloads on its first day, while Meta AI reached about 108,000 U.S. downloads during its debut.

Muse also lags behind ChatGPT, which surpassed 500,000 U.S. installs in less than a week when the country was its only market. At an average of about 83,300 downloads a day, ChatGPT reached that pace much faster than Muse.

Muse remains in its initial expansion phase and continues to climb the U.S. rankings. Its Android performance appears much weaker: the app ranks 338th in productivity on Google Play.

From chatbot to task-running agent

Muse is also available on the web and through WhatsApp, but app-store figures do not capture those channels, meaning its actual user base could be larger. The launch represents a major Meta bet on consumer AI agents that can perform tasks and take actions for users rather than simply answer questions.

Google and Anthropic are also entering the field through Gemini Spark and Claude Cowork, alongside applications focused on work and everyday life.

Competition shifts toward execution

Muse faces competition from Instinct, a text-based AI agent recently valued at about $2.5 billion. Instinct has added email addresses for users and built a social network for agents to coordinate plans and appointments. It has also launched integrations with Stripe and 1Password, along with location sharing.

Instinct has raised about $350 million. Muse, meanwhile, has access to Meta’s large ecosystem of apps and services, which could support adoption through deeper integration.

Privacy could shape adoption

Muse arrives at a sensitive moment because some capabilities require users to share more personal information. Meta has faced years of legal and regulatory scrutiny over privacy and data practices.

The launch came only days after Meta agreed to an $18 billion settlement in a multistate class action involving alleged consumer harms linked to its social platforms. The timing could make some users more cautious about a product built around greater access to personal data.

Muse’s rise to No. 2 gives Meta an early positive signal, but retention and real-world usage will determine whether the surge reflects temporary curiosity or a lasting shift toward AI agents handling everyday tasks. As Meta, Google, Anthropic and startups compete, the AI race is moving beyond smarter answers toward agents that can actually get things done.