Macroeconomic Indicators & Trends

September 30, 2026

Will Muse Curb Consumer Spending?

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Torsten Slok

Partner, Chief Economist

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Subscription businesses rely in part on consumer inertia. In Selling Subscriptions, Einav, Klopack and Mahoney (2025) find that cancellation frictions roughly double sellers' revenues on average. Muse, an AI agent that can identify and cancel unwanted subscriptions on a consumer's behalf, could weaken those economics by making it easier to break the cycle of unwanted renewals — a concern reflected in last week's selloff in subscription-related stocks. But lost subscription revenue is not necessarily lost consumption: these categories represent a small share of spending (see chart below), and consumers are more likely to redirect any savings than put them aside. The bottom line is that Muse is more likely to change where consumers spend than derail overall consumption.

Written by Allison Boxer

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