Erica Layer, a mom of a 2- and 6-year-old, has an enviable to-do list for her AI agent. 

The busy executive relies on an Instinct agent for low-stakes but time-intensive household tasks like meal planning, calendaring, and birthday reminders. 

"I do get a huge amount of time back," Layer says of delegating to an AI agent. "But also I'm doing the things that I just was dropping completely before."

Still, Layer is conflicted about her agent's persistence. The AI has suggested completing tasks on her behalf without explaining what happens to the data it accesses. Recently, her Instinct agent researched a family trip in Portugal, where she lives, and offered to book train tickets. 

The catch? It wanted her kids' passports to make the purchase. Layer runs a fractional AI company, operates her own team of agents professionally, and has taught nearly 100 people to build agentic operating systems. She consulted Instinct's data privacy terms, felt they lacked transparency, and worried about how her data would be used. Layer, who wrote about her experience, made the reservation herself instead.

Mashable attempted to contact Instinct's founder for comment but did not receive a reply as of publication.

Like many parents — particularly moms — Layer is eager for an agent to handle the exhausting aspects of running a household. At the same time, she's unwilling to connect her personal data to a platform without clarity about its policies. 

Parents are poised to be among the earliest adopters of AI agents for their families, yet unclear risks may compromise their personal and sensitive data.

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