Perplexity launches Comet: The AI-powered browser that's revolutionizing web search

Perplexity releasing Comet is substantial and is likely to change the way we surf the web. This is no small task in the AI search space, as it will try to dethrone Google Chrome with an AI-first approach to weaving AI into a browsing experience. With big tech backing it, like Jeff Bezos, Nvidia, and SoftBank, Comet will be a contender in the rapidly changing browser landscape.

What is Comet?

Comet is Perplexity’s first AI-native web browser, designed to be a thought partner and assistant for your digital life. Comet is different from the web browsers we use today that treat AI as an add-on, not a foundation. Traditional web browsing is a disconnected experience (links and tabs), while Comet replaces links and tabs with conversational interfaces that keep context across pages and browser sessions.

Through the Chromium technology platform, an open-source project, Comet will support any existing Chrome browser extensions via the Chrome Web Store and allow users to bring their existing bookmarks and settings into Comet. Instead of juggling a dozen or more open tabs, users interact with the Comet Assistant via natural language queries, moving away from a collection of pages or static content into a seamless, intelligent experience.

As the CEO, Aravind Srinivas, puts it, “from browsing to thinking” because the browser “powers a shift from browsing to thinking by collapsing complex workflows into fluid conversations.” This is what we expect from traditional browsers, which are primitive, while the internet is humanity’s extended mind.

Key features of Comet

The Comet Assistant

Comet’s main feature is the AI assistant in the sidebar that can see and understand any webpage you have open. Being able to see and interpret what’s on web pages means you can ask questions about YouTube videos or analyze a text in Google Docs or a summary of an article that lives on a different tab without having to copy/paste or switch tabs.

Conversational search and navigation

With Comet, you can highlight text you want to know more about and get an answer in seconds, compare products from different sites and types, and ask complex questions in natural language. The browser can do whole browsing sessions for you so you can focus on the value-added work while the AI does everything else!

Task automation and tool integrations

The browser can schedule meetings, send emails, buy items, and summarize information based on web activity. It manages your browser tabs for you while you navigate, intelligently organizes and closes duplicates and inactive tabs, so there is less clutter for your web experience.

In-built privacy and security

Comet is a privacy-centric browser that stores information locally and doesn’t use personal information to train their AI model, so it’s perfect for privacy-concerned people. On top of that, Comet has a native ad blocker, which is way better than Chrome’s recent restrictions on ad-blocking features.

How Comet is a game changer?

Comet takes browsing away from navigation as we know it to a cognition-based experience. Browsers are full of friction in the way they force you down a path of navigation (tabs and links) with no continuity and will often interrupt the thought you had. Comet is frictionless by giving you a holistic and contextualized interface that understands your intention.

As demand for better AI-powered search solutions continues to grow, consumers are choosing answer engines (think: Perplexity) over search engines (like Google). Answer engines deliver conversational responses and are therefore more effective and intuitive than search engines, which only provide a list of links. Comet provides conversational answers from the app with proper citations of sources rather than just a list of links. Perplexity’s strategy leverages its user base and measures its growth as it’s growing 20% and up and has over 780M queries a month. Comet has a head start in adopting the browser since the existing framework provides users resources that don’t exist when building from scratch.

How Comet fits into the AI landscape

Comet joins a crowded space where AI is becoming table stakes for browser success. The Browser Company’s Dia browser has similar AI-first features, and Microsoft has Copilot in Edge, but Comet’s unique position as a product from an AI search company gives it an edge. The browser uses Perplexity’s advanced AI architecture, local processing for simple tasks, and cloud-based APIs for complex ones. This hybrid approach gives you both performance and capability to deliver the conversational AI experience users are expecting.

Comet is also part of the broader trend towards “answer engines,” not search engines. As users get used to getting direct answers from AI systems like ChatGPT and Perplexity, browsers that can deliver that natively will have a big competitive advantage.

What this means for the future of browsing

The launch of Comet marks a fundamental shift in user expectations for web browsing. As AI gets smarter and more ubiquitous, users will expect their browsers to understand context, provide intelligent help, and reduce the friction of finding and using information online.

This goes beyond individual productivity and will reshape entire industries. Traditional SEO is evolving into Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), where content needs to be optimized for AI systems, not just search rankings. Publishers and content creators will need to adapt their strategies to stay visible in an AI-first browsing world. The privacy-first approach of Comet also addresses the growing concerns around data collection and usage by the tech giants. By storing data locally and not using personal info for AI training, Comet gives users more control over their digital footprint.

The browser market is getting more competitive as companies realize the importance of controlling how users access information. Google’s Chrome is facing competition from multiple AI-powered browsers and could end decades of browser stagnation and spark innovation across the industry.

Conclusion and Call to Action

Comet is more than just another browser launch; it’s a new way to interact with the web. By natively integrating AI into the browsing experience, Perplexity has created a browser that makes web navigation easier, smarter, and more effective.

Right now Comet is only available to Perplexity Max subscribers for $200/month, but wide-scale deployment will be in summer 2025. Early adopters get to experience the next gen of web browsing. Comet’s core concept is focused on conversation, not navigation; context, not keywords; and assistance, not access. It’s a new paradigm for AI professionals and web users alike. If you just want to try out a new way of browsing, join the Comet waitlist, and you’ll be invited to try out the “next level” of web at perplexity.ai/comet. As the browsing wars heat up, Comet is an enticing and intelligent alternative, willing to put user experience over speed, compatibility, and cookie politics.

The question is not if AI will change web browsing but if you are ready for that change. Perplexity has built Comet to be more than just a browser to browse the web.

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