They want to run your life. Tidara helps you run it.
Meta, Instinct and others are racing to build AI that books, buys, sends and agrees to things on your behalf. We built the opposite: an assistant you text like a person, that remembers everything and handles the admin, and never spends a dollar or speaks for you without your yes.
Plain text on any phone · No app · No card for the trial · $24/month after
Five promises the others don't make.
Plain text messages to one number. iPhone, Android or a flip phone. No app, no invite code, no WhatsApp account.
It drafts, suggests and reminds. It never sends an email, buys anything or agrees to a plan until you say so.
What you tell it is never used to train anyone's AI, never sold and never shown ads. You pay for it, so you're not the product.
Text HUMAN and Joe, who built it, answers. Not a help center. Every piece of feedback is read.
Text STOP to end messages, DELETE to erase everything we hold, permanently, within a minute.
How the personal AI assistants compare.
Based on what each company and independent reviewers have published, as of September 30, 2026. These products change quickly; we update this page when they do.
| Tidara | Meta Muse | Instinct | Poke | ChatGPT | Siri · Gemini · Alexa+ | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| How you use it | Plain text to one number, from any phone. No app. | Meta's app, web, or WhatsApp | iMessage or WhatsApp. Invite-only | iMessage, SMS, WhatsApp or Telegram | ChatGPT app or website | Built into your phone or speaker, mostly by voice |
| Price | $24/month. 14 days free, no card. | Free tier (card required), $20 or $100/month | Free during beta; pricing not announced | Free, $19 or $199/month | Free and paid plans | Included with the device; Alexa+ free with Prime or $19.99/month |
| Spends money or speaks for you | Never without your yes. It drafts; you send. | Yes: sends email, books and buys in your accounts, with approvals | Yes: built to act on its own, including agreeing to things for you | Yes: manages your inbox and sends email | Agent mode can act in a web browser for you | Can call, message and order things by voice |
| Uses your conversations to train AI | Never | On by default | On by default; you can opt out | On unless you turn on Maximum Privacy | On by default for personal accounts; you can opt out | Depends on the company and your settings |
| Built around | Your household's admin: bills, school forms, renewals, appointments, and a second brain for everything you tell it | Doing tasks across 40+ apps, plus Meta's social apps | Doing tasks for you on the web: booking, buying, negotiating | Email, calendar and app automations | Answering anything; general-purpose | Quick voice commands and your phone or smart home |
| Texts you first | Morning briefing at your time, reminders, renewals before they're due, a Sunday recap | Not advertised | Yes, proactive check-ins | Yes, proactive nudges | Daily updates and scheduled tasks inside the app | Alarms, reminders and notifications on the device |
| Plans with friends' assistants | Yes. Both people opt in, only free times are shared, and each of you approves the plan | Not announced | Yes, its Trusted Person network | Not announced | Not announced | Not announced |
| A human you can reach | Text HUMAN; Joe answers personally | Help center | Not published | "Poke Human" on the $199 plan | Help center | Help center |
| Getting your data out | Text DELETE: everything erased within a minute. Download your notes any time. | Through account settings | Through account settings | Account deletion takes up to 24 hours | Through account settings | Through account settings |
Swipe the table sideways to see every assistant →
An assistant that shops and books for you needs your logins and your card. Tidara never asks for either.
Early users of the do-it-for-you assistants have already reported emails sent without approval, data kept after they disconnected, and assistants tricked by instructions hidden in an email. Tidara reads what you connect, drafts what you ask for, and waits for you.
When another assistant is the better pick.
You want AI to do the buying
If you want an assistant that books the flight and pays for it without checking in, Instinct and Muse go further than we do. That's a choice we made on purpose.
You want quick answers
For a one-off question, the ChatGPT app is great, and Tidara answers questions too. Tidara earns its keep when you want something remembered and handled over weeks and months.
You mostly talk to your speaker
Timers, music and lights belong to Siri, Gemini or Alexa. Tidara is for the paperwork, dates and details of your life, by text.
Try the one that asks first.
Fourteen days free, no card. Set up in two minutes, then just text it.
Sources (checked September 30, 2026): Meta: Introducing Muse · Carly: Meta Muse, what it costs and its limits · TechCrunch: Instinct raises $1B · Vellum: Instinct breakdown · Carly: what early Instinct users found · eesel: Instinct review · Layer3: Poke pricing, channels and safety · OpenAI: memory and controls · Siri, Gemini and Alexa+ compared. Meta Muse, Instinct, Poke, ChatGPT, Siri, Gemini and Alexa+ are trademarks of their owners. Tidara Tech isn't affiliated with or endorsed by any of them. Spot something out of date? Email [email protected] and we'll fix it.