Consumer AI assistants appear to be regaining momentum, with Meta’s Muse, OpenAI’s Dots and Instinct attracting attention for handling everyday tasks. The article argues that better capabilities and growing interest do not yet make consumer AI a reliably profitable business: customers’ willingness to pay remains limited, while running AI services is unusually costly.

Figures cited suggest only 2.2% of consumers paid for AI in May, spending an average of $31 a month. Bank of America estimated about 3% of US consumers paid in March, while a Menlo survey found that half of daily AI users pay. Even if an AI service reached Netflix’s 325 million subscribers at $34 per customer each month, the article estimates annual revenue at $11 billion—less than a third of OpenAI’s operating costs—helping explain why AI firms are prioritising enterprise contracts.