Summary: A startup called Tab came out of stealth this week with its new Tab AI assistant. It lives inside WhatsApp and iMessage. You just text it your errands — and it does them. One of its founders has Pakistani roots, which makes this story extra special for our readers.
What happened
Tab announced this week that it has come out of stealth. The news broke on TechCrunch on October 7, 2026. The company says it is already worth $300 million. It did not say how much money it raised.
The round is backed by SV Angel, Valar Ventures, and American Spirit. Three founders started Tab earlier this year: Brennan Erbz, Stafford Schlitt, and Ammar Amdani.
Amdani is a Pakistani-American entrepreneur. He built the early-stage fund Adapt Ventures with his brother, and both made the Forbes 30 Under 30 list in 2022. For our Pakistani readers, that is something to be proud of.
How Tab works: no app, just text
The Tab AI assistant lives inside iMessage and WhatsApp. There is no separate app to open. You add it like a contact, and you text it your tasks.
Ask it to book a flight. Ask it to call a shop. Ask it to order groceries. Ask it to find a birthday gift. It does the job. It does not just tell you how to do it.
This is the big difference. Most AI assistants give you steps. Tab takes the steps itself.
Co-founder Ammar Amdani told TechCrunch: “You text it like you’d text someone you trust and it takes the weight off.”
How? Tab gets its own phone number, its own computer, and its own digital wallet. That is how it can act on your behalf instead of just giving advice.
What the Tab AI assistant can actually do
Tab handles everyday errands. It books travel. It calls businesses. It drafts emails. It orders groceries. It finds gifts. It even chases wire transfers.
It can also take care of the boring jobs you keep putting off — the bills, the bookings, the calls you never make.
Right now Tab is in private beta. You can only join through a waitlist. The company has not shared a price yet. It says it is growing by word of mouth, and it plans to launch a new product soon.
The trust question: is it safe?
An AI with access to your wallet sounds scary. Tab knows this, and it is making trust its main selling point.
Tab says it does not use your data to train its models. Your payment card details sit in a vault that even Tab itself cannot open. And it never spends money or takes a big action without your clear approval first.
Amdani says this is where the real race is. In his words to TechCrunch, an AI assistant with this kind of power is “only as good as your trust in it.”
Think about it. Meta’s Muse, OpenAI’s dots, and the breakout app Instinct all want the same job — an AI that does things for you. The winner will not be the one with the flashiest demo. It will be the one people trust enough to let into their lives.
We covered both Muse and dots here on aiflowix: Meta Muse AI Agent for Small Business and OpenAI Launches Dots AI Assistant.
Why it matters for freelancers and students
Now think about your own week. Booking travel. Calling a service. Drafting a reply. Chasing a payment. These small jobs eat your time.
For a freelancer, Tab could handle the boring errands while you do real client work. You text it once, and it takes the weight off.
For a student, it could book travel during a busy exam week or sort out simple tasks you never have time for.
But stay realistic. Tab is in private beta, so you may wait a while for access. And trusting an AI with your money is a big step. If you get in, start small. Watch how it handles simple tasks first, then give it more.
One more thing to keep in mind. Tab is new and untested. It will make mistakes. Every AI assistant does in its early days. So do not hand it your most important tasks right away. Let it earn your trust first.
What happens next
Tab is still young. No price, no open launch date, just a waitlist. But a $300 million valuation at launch sends one clear signal: investors believe the future of AI is assistants that act, not just chat.
The big question is who will win the trust race. Meta has billions of users. OpenAI has ChatGPT. Tab has only a waitlist and a bold idea. But big companies have lost this kind of race before.
We will test Tab as soon as we get access, and we will update this article then. Meanwhile, if you want to compare your options, check our guide: Best AI Tools for Freelancers.