Perplexity AI Explained: Everything You Need to Know
Today's AI services market is dynamic and diverse. In addition to the already classic ChatGPT and Google Gemini chatbots, there are products worthy of attention. In this article, we will discuss the search assistant, Perplexity AI, whose popularity is growing every month. Read on to learn how to use Perplexity AI, its capabilities, advantages and disadvantages, and how much users pay for it.
Introduction to Perplexity AI
Perplexity AI is a search engine with a conversational interface powered by artificial intelligence (AI). Its developers call it a Swiss Army Knife for information search. Users, meanwhile, consider it a hybrid of ChatGPT and Google Search with unique features.
The search engine Perplexity AI was founded in 2022 by a team of experienced engineers: Aravind Srinivas, Denis Yarats, Johnny Ho, and Andy Konwinski. Aravind Srinivas previously worked at Google Brain, DeepMind, and OpenAI, specializing in machine learning and artificial intelligence. Denis Yarats has experience at Meta (in AI research) and Quora. Johnny Ho was a trader at the financial firm Tower Research Capital and briefly an engineer at Quora. Andy Konwinski is a co-founder and technical specialist at Databricks.
In December 2022, they introduced a pilot version of the Perplexity AI chatbot. It operated through a web interface, a mobile app (iOS, Android), and a Google Chrome browser extension. By February 2023, the product had 2 million unique visitors. By May 2025, the platform processed 30 million requests per day.
The basic version of the AI search assistant is available to all users free of charge, without requiring registration. Those interested can register an account through Google, Apple, or email to save their search history and access professional tools. The system also offers a business version, Perplexity Enterprise, with advanced functionality and paid plans, which we will discuss below.
Source: perplexity.ai
The service has become one of the best AI search engines not only due to its free plan but also due to its versatility and wide range of features. Perplexity's AI use cases span a wide range of areas beyond simple information research:
- Product development. AI algorithms effectively automate repetitive tasks by quickly finding relevant information from different sources. The system also performs in-depth market and competitor analysis. In addition, the platform helps create effective collaborative environments for product teams.
- Coding. With the help of the online assistant, programmers, engineers, and other IT specialists can quickly develop roadmaps for their products. They can automate the generation, verification, and debugging of software code, as well as a number of other operations.
- Finance. Perplexity AI provides basic tools for financial analysis. It can track company earnings and stock prices in real time, using data from Financial Modeling Prep (FMP).
- Marketing. The platform provides data-driven insights to optimize marketing strategies by mining essential information about brands and products and generating ideas for new campaigns and promotions.
- Sales. The AI assistant helps streamline and optimize the sales process. It generates detailed insights on leads, clients, and competitors. The service can also automate CRM data updates via integrations. These features help teams save time on routine tasks.
With our ApiX-Drive service, you can optimize work with Perplexity models. Configure integrations for Perplexity and make the most of AI technologies.
Key Features and Functionalities
For a more detailed look at the hybrid search assistant, check out the Perplexity AI review of features we've prepared for you. They demonstrate how the platform integrates search, analytics, and content generation.
The service offers several operating modes: quick search, in-depth research, report generation, and project management capabilities. This suite of tools makes the platform convenient for both personal and professional use.
Search
The standard AI search mode with real-time short answer generation is available in both free and paid versions of the service. Its settings allow users to specify preferred sources: Web, Academic, Social, or Finance. Here, users can also select the required AI models (Sonar, Claude Sonnet 4.5, Claude Opus 4.1, GPT-5, Grok 4, and others), upload files, and enter queries by voice.
Research
The in-depth search mode for information on a specific topic is available only in the paid Pro version of the service. AI algorithms send dozens of search queries and analyze hundreds of sources simultaneously. The result is the generation of a detailed research report. The response to a query in Research mode can take up to 4–5 minutes.
Labs
Labs is one of the newest features added to Perplexity AI in 2025. In this mode, users can use AI to create a variety of projects, from reports and tables to dashboards and mini-apps.
During project development, AI algorithms perform deep data searches, advanced analyses, and research. They can also run code, generate images and graphs, and perform other tasks. The average result generation time is around 10 minutes. Access to Labs is available only to Pro subscribers.
Comet
Comet web browser, with built-in AI algorithms, was introduced by its developers in 2025. Initially, it was only available to Pro and Max subscribers. Now, it's free for everyone to use. At the time of writing, it supports Windows and macOS.
- Automate the work of an online store or landing
- Empower through integration
- Don't spend money on programmers and integrators
- Save time by automating routine tasks
Comet can be used for AI-powered information search and analysis, website and app development, email correspondence, and various project management tasks. It can also help with curriculum creation and other projects, online shopping, bookmark management, and a range of other tasks.
Pages
By using the Pages feature, users can automatically generate extensive text content on a given topic. The service finds relevant information online, organizes it, and then transforms it into professionally designed articles, reports, guides, and other types of text.
Pages can set the desired tone and style for text, as well as rework existing content, reducing or expanding its length. If necessary, it can also select relevant images.
Discover
The Discover tool creates a digest of recent news, articles, and other online content for users. In this mode, they receive a personalized content feed powered by AI.
The feed can be customized by selecting topics such as technology and science, art and culture, finance, sports, entertainment, and more. It can also include up-to-date information on the weather, financial markets, stock prices of trending companies, and more.
Spaces
Spaces are virtual workspaces within Perplexity that are accessible to registered users and teams. Here, they can save search results, threads, and links, organizing them by topic and project.
In Spaces mode, users can invite participants, manage their access rights, and create custom instructions for AI models. You can also upload up to 50 files to a single space or export them from cloud storage services (Google Drive, SharePoint, OneDrive, Box, Dropbox).
Enterprise
Source: perplexity.ai
The business version, Perplexity Enterprise, offers an expanded set of modes and features sought after by entrepreneurs and professionals. It allows the platform's tools to be integrated into third-party systems via API integrations.
As of October 2025, the following plans are in effect:
- Pro ($20 per month or $200 per year).
- Enterprise Pro ($40 per month or $400 per year).
- Enterprise Max ($325 per month or $3,250 per year).
Advantages of Using Perplexity AI
Perplexity AI offers a wide range of features that make it a convenient tool for search, analysis, and content generation. The platform provides quick access to relevant information, in-depth analytics, and flexible integration with workflows.
The key benefits of the service include:
- Functionality. When comparing Perplexity AI vs. Google, one of Perplexity AI’s main advantages is its extensive toolset. It offers a range of useful features, from in-depth research and workspaces to text generation and project management. Furthermore, it features its own AI-powered browser.
- Real-time analytics. AI algorithms collect and analyze data from hundreds of sources. As a result, users receive valuable insights based on relevant and reliable data. This makes the platform particularly useful for domains and tasks that require rapid conclusions and decisions.
- Adaptability and scalability. Perplexity's tools easily integrate into business workflows across various industries, formats, and organizational sizes. They help optimize problem-solving processes in industries such as manufacturing, IT, finance, marketing, education, and more.
- Usability. The service's AI technologies can be accessed via its website, mobile app, Comet web browser, or API integrations. The dialog interface allows users to quickly submit queries, save results, and switch between search, analysis, and generation modes.
- Integrations. Among Perplexity AI's features, its ability to integrate with third-party services is especially noteworthy. The platform easily connects to external data sources (from databases to cloud storage) via built-in connectors. A Pro subscription allows users to directly connect Perplexity AI with numerous services and applications via API integrations.
Limitations and Challenges
When reviewing Perplexity AI's pros and cons, it is important to address the main challenges most frequently encountered by platform users.
Key challenges:
- Dependence on data quality. Like other AI platforms, Perplexity's performance heavily depends on the quality of the data it retrieves or is fed. Low-quality, outdated, or biased sources often lead to erroneous conclusions and incorrect AI outputs.
- Implementation complexity. Integrating the service's tools with external systems often presents significant challenges for developers and administrators. Implementing AI algorithms often requires a complete overhaul of infrastructure, software stack, and workflows.
- Insufficient oversight. Using Perplexity in critical tasks and processes can pose significant risks for the company and beyond. This is due to a lack of sufficient human oversight. Overreliance on AI automation can lead to serious errors with unpredictable consequences.
- Security and privacy concerns. Like other AI-powered search tools, Perplexity collects, analyzes, and stores vast amounts of data, some of which is classified as confidential. This creates significant risks of data leakage and the potential exploitation of AI systems as targets for cyberattacks or other security threats.
Final Thoughts
In just a few years, the Perplexity AI search engine has become one of the most sought-after and promising AI-powered services. The secret to its popularity lies in its innovative hybrid approach to online search and information retrieval. This approach has made these processes faster, more efficient, more relevant, more personalized, and more accessible to a wide audience.
With its rich functionality, Perplexity AI has become an invaluable tool for specialists, teams, companies, and anyone who interacts with data from the internet or other sources. The platform's active development and rapid user growth indicate a promising future. It could potentially challenge the dominance of giants like Google and OpenAI in the coming years.
We remind you that with the help of our online connector ApiX-Drive you can implement automation yourself, without programming or special skills. Check out the step-by-step instructions for setting up integrations:
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