Meta's Muse AI Agent Tops ChatGPT Downloads, Lifting META Shares 11%

Meta Platforms (META) shares jumped 11.43% to close at $741.24 on Monday, as its new personal AI agent Muse surpassed OpenAI's ChatGPT in downloads, signaling possible returns on the company's planned AI capital spending of up to $145 billion this year. Launched in the US on Sept. 8, Muse performs multi-step tasks — checking accounts, filling web forms, booking trips, sending emails and handling some online shopping — via a standalone app and WhatsApp. Meta has set pricing at a free base tier and $20 and $100 monthly premium plans. Meta also launched Meta One, which has drawn 15 million subscriptions and trials, and a Model API charging developers and enterprises. The company's family of apps had 3.6 billion daily active users as of June 30. Amazon (AMZN) has demanded Meta remove its shopping platform from Muse, citing unauthorized access. Meta's Connect conference begins Wednesday.