Meet Muse: Meta's cute new AI agent that wants to make your life easier

Meta is betting that a friendly face and a playful personality could make artificial intelligence more appealing to everyday users.

Muse, the tech giant’s new doll-like AI agent, shot to the top of the Apple App Store charts after being showcased at the company’s Meta Connect conference this week.

Designed to help users manage everyday tasks, Muse is being promoted as an AI assistant “built for everyone,” including people with little experience using technology.

AI agents are systems that can independently carry out tasks on a user's behalf. They are increasingly finding their way into online workspaces, social media platforms and personal devices.

A cuddly face for artificial intelligence

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the default Muse avatar, a cream-coloured character with beady black eyes and an upward smile, is named Jolly. The name reflects its “jolly and completely customizable character and personality,” he said.

Muse is part of a broader effort by technology companies to make AI-powered products more approachable by giving them cute, almost pet-like appearances, voices and personalities.

Experts have said such design choices, which make technology seem more human, could become increasingly common as interactions between people and robots become part of everyday life. Cuteness can evoke “deep-seated biological responses” in people, helping make AI systems feel more familiar.

Muse avatars can take on different appearances, with users able to customise everything from their names to their clothing. Zuckerberg’s own agent, named Agrippa after the Roman general and statesman, wears a toga and a wreath around its head.

During the event, Zuckerberg also introduced what he called the “Muse charm”, a small handheld device designed to activate the agent while users are on the move.

He held up the keychain-like device onstage at Meta Connect in Menlo Park, California. Its appearance resembles a blend of a Labubu toy and a Tamagotchi.

“Talking to your Muse is often the fastest way to get things done, and it is also just really fun and cute,” Zuckerberg said.

He added that he had used Agrippa to develop a baking recipe and order ingredients for himself and his daughter.

AI agents and the privacy question

Muse is also being integrated into Meta’s expanding range of AI-powered smart glasses, which have faced criticism over concerns that their cameras and audio features could enable casual surveillance.

In an interview with NBC News, Zuckerberg said Meta would continue to strengthen privacy safeguards for its smart glasses.

He also said every Muse agent would have its own private and secure computer, called Muse Secure VM, designed to store the agent and the user’s personal data.

Meta plans to introduce another system, Muse Confidential VM, in the future. Zuckerberg said it would ensure that “even Meta won’t be able to see that information.”

The company is positioning Muse as more than a digital assistant, with ambitions to develop it into a personalised AI system capable of helping people accomplish a wide range of tasks.

“In the coming years, I expect that Muse is going to grow into the personal superintelligence that billions of people around the world are going to use to accomplish their goals and improve their lives,” Zuckerberg said.