Produced by: Mohsin Shaikh
Perplexity’s new Comet browser doesn’t just search—it thinks, talks, and summarizes. It’s an ad-free command center for research and discovery. And for Google, it’s a slow-burning headache with a billion-dollar valuation behind it.
Is Perplexity a “Google killer”? Not yet. But it's gunning for the throne, rewriting the rulebook with citation-backed AI answers instead of blue links—and stealing the hearts of students, coders, and researchers by the millions.
Gone are the SEO traps and pop-up jungles. Perplexity gives you one clean, sourced, AI-written answer. If Google is a mall, Perplexity is a private guide—and it’s catching on fast among power users.
More than a browser, Comet is Perplexity’s AI-native operating system for the web. With built-in automation, memory, and summarization, it’s a preview of what post-Google search could look like—and Google knows it.
780 million searches in one month. A 20% monthly growth rate. A $14 billion valuation. Perplexity isn’t just hype—it’s building something sticky. But Google still towers at 89.7% market share.
Google owns “fast answers” and local search. But Perplexity owns context—handling complex questions, long reads, and deep dives. Gen Z and students are already switching tabs—and habits.
Google’s response? AI Overviews via Gemini. But experts say it’s clunky, ad-heavy, and late to the party. Perplexity still feels faster, cleaner, and more transparent—especially when facts and citations matter.
Publishers are worried: Perplexity drives less web traffic than Google. The rise of AI answers may change how the entire web is monetized—posing new dilemmas for journalism, blogs, and brand visibility.
Perplexity isn’t trying to replace Google—it’s becoming something else: an AI research layer for the web, built for humans who don’t just click—they think, question, and follow sources. That’s where it wins.