Khosla backs Wajo’s bid to stand out with a trust-focused AI agent
Investor Vinod Khosla is backing Wajo, a personal AI-agent startup founded by former Google and DeepMind engineer Shivani Poddar, arguing that its focus on trust and safety could help it compete in a crowded market. Wajo’s agent, called Fo, can carry out tasks for users across messaging apps and by phone, but early tests also raise questions about how clearly agents should identify themselves when calling people.
Fo can handle scheduling and other errands, contact businesses, use a virtual credit card, and bring in a human to complete tasks when needed. Wajo says it operates in 107 countries and has grown tenfold since launching in late September, but gave no user or funding figures; it has backing from Jeff Dean and Gokul Rajaram.
- Khosla is betting Wajo can stand out through trust and safety.
- Its Fo agent handles errands, calls and payments for users.
- Wajo says it is used in 107 countries and has grown 10x.
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Personal AI agents are software systems designed to carry out tasks on behalf of users without requiring direct human supervision. Wajo's product, Fo, handles errands such as scheduling appointments, contacting businesses, and managing payments through messaging apps and phone calls.
Wajo was founded by Shivani Poddar, an engineer previously employed at Google and DeepMind. The personal AI agent market is increasingly crowded, with numerous companies developing similar systems to automate tasks for users.
As AI agents become more capable and independent, questions about how they identify themselves and how much users can trust them have become increasingly important. The ability to make phone calls on a user's behalf, for instance, raises questions about whether automated systems should clearly disclose that they are not human.
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Originally published by TechCrunch as “Vinod Khosla believes ex-DeepMind engineer’s Wajo will win agent market on trust”.