Why Normal People Aren’t Using AI Agents
The tech industry is realizing it needs to build agents based on what regular consumers want, not just what its AI models can do.
Despite the belief within Silicon Valley that AI agents are the future, most people remain unaware of their existence. Josh Miller, CEO of The Browser Company, raises concerns about the lack of consumer interest in AI agents, stating that the industry should focus on building products that people genuinely want. OpenAI reports that its Codex and ChatGPT Work agents have around 10 million weekly users, while Anthropic claims similar adoption rates for its Claude Code and Cowork agents.
However, these numbers pale in comparison to the billions of monthly active users for chatbots like ChatGPT and Gemini. The issue lies in the fact that consumer-level AI agents have not yet been developed, and most AI insiders acknowledge the absence of a compelling consumer product. Miller argues that AI agents are more of a technology than a standalone product, and they require a more user-centric approach.
The Browser Company's most popular feature, a personalized morning briefing, was made possible by an AI agent but is presented in a way that does not require users to understand its technical underpinnings. Miller attributes the lack of mainstream adoption to groupthink within the AI industry, where developers are overly obsessed with their own sci-fi visions of AI agents.
He urges the industry to question the effectiveness of current AI agent products and to focus on creating joyful, useful, and approachable tools that resonate with consumers.
Written by urgent.news from Wired's reporting — not their text. Machine-written; read the original for the full account.
