Illustration by OneAppleFall. Not the Meta Muse app.
Researched October 20, 2026
Meta’s new Muse app is not another chatbot. It is a personal AI agent: you give it a job, such as booking a table, ordering something or sorting out a trip, and it works through the steps on its own computer in the cloud. [1] About a week after its September launch it was the No. 1 free app in Apple’s US App Store, ahead of ChatGPT. [2]
It has also run into two problems: Amazon has blocked it from shopping on Amazon.com, and it is not available at all in the UK or the European Union. [1][3] This guide explains what Muse does, how it handles your money and accounts, and what we know about a European release.
Quick answer: Muse launched in the US on September 8, 2026, then reached Canada and Mexico. [1][3] It is not available in the UK or EU, and Meta has given no date; its help centre says Muse is “in limited testing” and not “available in all locations yet.” [3] There is a free tier and paid plans at $20 and $100 a month. [1] Amazon blocked Muse from its store on September 21. [1]
This is a researched explainer based on Meta’s announcements and published reporting. We have not used Muse ourselves.
What is Meta Muse?
“Muse” is the name Meta uses for a whole family of AI products from its Superintelligence Labs, so it is easy to get confused. [3]
| Name | What it is |
|---|---|
| Muse (the agent) | The consumer app that browses, books and buys for you. This is what this article is about. [3] |
| Muse Spark | The AI model the agent runs on, introduced in April 2026. [1][3] |
| Muse Image, Muse Video, Muse Voice Transcribe | Separate models for images, video and speech. [3] |
| Muse Glimmer | An open-weights model you can run on your own hardware. [3] |
The Muse agent is available on iOS, Android, the web at muse.ai and through WhatsApp. [2]
What can the Muse agent do?
Meta describes Muse as an agent for long-running, multi-step tasks rather than single questions. [1] According to Meta’s materials and reporting:
- It works on its own cloud computer. Each user’s agent runs in a separate virtual machine with a built-in browser, and you can watch it work. [1]
- It handles everyday tasks across email, calendars, payments, dining and shopping. [2]
- It uses partner services where it can. Meta named partners including Stripe, Shopify, Best Buy, Gap, Sephora, Walmart, Wayfair, Expedia, Instacart, GitHub and Notion. [1] Where no direct connection exists, it can use a browser instead. [2]
- You can personalise it with a name, avatar and communication style. [1]
- It is expanding to other devices. On September 23, Meta announced video conversations with a real-time avatar, control of Mac apps, a dedicated email address for the agent, access from smart glasses, and a small handheld device called Muse Charm. [1]
How Muse handles payments, passwords and permissions
An agent that can spend money needs strong guard rails, and this is where Muse has drawn the most attention.
| Area | What Meta says or has been reported |
|---|---|
| Payments | Handled through Link by Stripe, using a one-time card for each transaction. [2] |
| Sensitive actions | Muse asks you before sensitive steps, and a separate monitoring agent called Sentinel approves outgoing traffic and separates read access from write access. [1][2] |
| Passwords | Meta says Muse “has no visibility into people’s passwords or payment methods” and that shared credentials go into secure storage. [2] |
| Advertising | Meta says Muse conversations and virtual-machine data are not shared with its ad systems, and there are no ads in Muse. [1][2] |
| AI training | Meta uses your requests to train its models by default; you can turn this off. [1] |
There have also been warning signs. In September, 404 Media reported that some phone calls Muse placed to businesses during testing, presented as automated, were actually completed by human call-centre workers. Meta said this kind of internal testing is standard and that public features would come with disclosures and privacy protections. [1]
Why Amazon blocked Muse
On September 21, 2026, Amazon stopped Muse from placing orders on Amazon.com. People who try now see a pop-up saying: “Continued access by an unauthorized AI agent violates Amazon’s Conditions of Use, to which our customers have agreed.” [1][2]
Amazon’s complaints, as reported:
- Meta did not tell Amazon that Muse would use its store, and refused a request to leave Amazon out. [2]
- Muse does not identify itself as an agent when it browses. [2]
- It appeared to capture and store customer login details, and could reach account pages and order history. [2]
Meta’s earlier position is that Muse cannot see passwords or payment methods. [2] Neither side’s claims have been independently tested, and Amazon has not said whether it will sue; it says it is talking directly with Meta. [2]
There is a business angle too. Amazon earned $68.6 billion from advertising in 2025, much of it from sponsored product listings, and an agent that shops for you can skip past those listings. [2] Amazon also has its own shopping assistant and has restricted agents from Google and OpenAI, while Shopify allows Muse on its stores. [1][2]
What it means for you: if you use Muse in the US, it can still shop at its partner retailers, but not at Amazon. Keep using Amazon’s own app or website for Amazon orders.
Is Meta Muse available in the UK or Europe?
No. As of mid-October 2026:
| Country or region | Muse agent status |
|---|---|
| United States | Available since September 8, 2026 [1][3] |
| Canada | Available since September 18, 2026 [3] |
| Mexico | Listed by September 24, 2026 [3] |
| United Kingdom | Not available; no date given [3] |
| European Union | Not available; no date given [3][4] |
Meta has not explained why the UK and EU are missing. [3][4] Commentators point to Europe’s rules as a likely factor, though these are their own analysis rather than reasons Meta has given: [4]
- GDPR, which requires a clear legal basis for processing personal data, matters for an agent that works in the background across your accounts.
- The EU AI Act now requires AI systems to disclose that they are AI and to label generated content, with fines of up to €15 million or 3% of global turnover.
- The Digital Markets Act requires Meta, as a “gatekeeper,” to get separate consent before combining data from Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp and Messenger.
Muse is not alone: OpenAI says its new “dots” agents will not reach Pro users in the EEA, Switzerland or the UK for now. [4] Meta’s general assistant, Meta AI, has been available in the UK since 2024, so a later UK launch for Muse is possible, but nothing has been announced. [3]
What UK and EU users can do now
- Use Meta AI, which has been available in the UK since 2024. [3]
- Developers can already use Muse Spark through Meta’s API and download Muse Glimmer, according to AIWiz. [3]
- Watch out for lookalikes. If you search app stores for “Muse” in the UK or EU, check the developer is Meta before installing anything.
- Don’t use a VPN to get around the block. It may break Meta’s terms, and an agent with access to your accounts is not something to run on an unsupported setup.
How much does Muse cost?
There is a free tier, with paid subscriptions at $20 and $100 a month for heavier use. [1] Meta has said it will not show ads in Muse and expects to earn money by “taking a small fee from transactions” the agent completes. [1]
Should you trust an AI agent with your shopping?
Whatever happens with Muse in Europe, the same questions apply to any agent that can act for you:
- Start small. Use read-only or low-value tasks first, such as comparing options or drafting a booking, before letting it pay for anything.
- Check what it can access. Review which accounts are connected and remove any it does not need.
- Keep approvals on for anything that spends money or changes an account.
- Look at the receipts. Check bank statements and order confirmations, especially in the first few weeks.
- Know the store’s rules. As the Amazon dispute shows, some retailers do not allow outside agents.
Questions
Is Meta Muse free?
Yes, there is a free tier, plus paid plans at $20 and $100 a month. [1]
Can I use Muse in the UK?
Not yet. Meta lists it as in limited testing and has given no UK date. [3]
Can Muse buy things on Amazon?
No. Amazon blocked Muse from shopping on Amazon.com on September 21, 2026. [1]
Does Muse see my passwords?
Meta says it has no visibility into passwords or payment methods and stores shared credentials securely. Amazon has disputed this, and neither side’s claims have been independently tested. [2]
Is Muse the same as Meta AI?
No. Meta AI is Meta’s general assistant inside its apps. Muse is a separate agent app built to carry out multi-step tasks for you. [1][3]
