I Tried Perplexity's Comet Ai Browser - Here's What You Need To Know

6 days ago

Perplexity Comet isn't nan first AI-powered web browser to arrive. That grant goes to Dia, but acknowledgment to nan fame of Perplexity arsenic an AI-enabled hunt engine and chatbot, it's getting a batch of attention. It deserves it.

An agentic browser, Comet isn't conscionable a web browser pinch AI glued to it, arsenic are Chrome pinch Gemini and Edge pinch Copilot. It's designed from nan crushed up to usage AI to automate tasks and amended your workflow.

Also: Perplexity's Comet AI browser is hurtling toward Chrome - really to effort it

Its architecture is built astir an AI assistant, Comet Assistant, that lives successful a sidebar. There, it tin activity connected nan contented of immoderate progressive webpage. So, for instance, you tin inquire questions astir YouTube videos, analyse Google Docs, aliases summarize articles without leaving your page aliases different unfastened tabs. You tin besides usage it to execute specified tasks arsenic booking meetings, making purchases, aliases signing up for services.

In short, Comet Assistant is context-aware, capable to reference unfastened tabs for research, summarize contented inline, and reply questions astir web pages without copy-pasting. This is particularly useful for tasks for illustration comparing products crossed sites aliases analyzing accusation connected nan fly.

If you're nan benignant of personification who keeps dozens of tabs unfastened erstwhile you're moving connected a problem, you'll emotion really Comet tin propulsion accusation from each your tabs to springiness you answers.

The answers themselves travel from nan main Perplexity Large Language Model (LLM). As before, I recovered Perplexity to springiness bully answers, mostly speaking. Better still, since Perplexity cites sources for everything it tells you, it's easy to guarantee its responses are accurate. Let maine add, for those of you who want AI to lick each your questions without work, you request to cheque those citations. Like each LLMs, Perplexity still often gets facts wrong. Always, ever double-check its responses.

Comet is built connected Google's open-source Chromium -- yes, it's yet different Chrome-based browser -- truthful it should beryllium compatible pinch almost each Chrome extensions, and seamlessly import your bookmarks and settings.

That proved to beryllium nan lawsuit erstwhile I tested Comet connected my Apple 2023 Mac Mini pinch an M2 processor and 8 GB of RAM moving macOS Sequoia 15.5. Indeed, nan setup process took specified moments, pinch each my Chrome bookmarks, extensions, and logins transferring complete smoothly. For now, nan only measurement you tin instal and tally Comet is connected a Mac pinch an M processor.

Comet will not tally connected an Intel-powered Mac. I know. I tried it conscionable for giggles connected my Intel-based Mac mini. I liked my aged Macs, but it's past clip to move on.

Eventually, you'll beryllium capable to tally Comet connected Windows, but it won't beryllium successful nan adjacent fewer days. Sometime aft that, Comet will beryllium disposable connected Linux. While nan browser itself is free -- and ever will beryllium -- for now, you must besides beryllium a Perplexity Max tier subscriber, which costs $200 per period to usage it fully. Even then, not everyone will get it immediately. Perplexity is rolling it retired gradually to waitlisted users. As users are added, caller ones will person a constricted number of invites to share.

Also: Perplexity joins high-powered, high-priced AI title - here's everything 'Max' includes

If you can't wait, you tin download nan program for nan Mac today. However, it won't beryllium afloat functional unless you've received an invitation. The 1 characteristic you will beryllium capable to usage successful Perplexity will beryllium capable to publication your existent tabs and usage their accusation to reply your queries. You'll besides often spot an correction connection telling you, "Your Comet acquisition is restricted."

Once I had it installed, I recovered it worked quickly, but its capacity wasn't outstanding. Rather than conscionable relying connected my impression, I benchmarked nan programme pinch Speedometer 3.1. This is an open-source web browser benchmark that measures Web exertion responsiveness by timing simulated personification interactions connected various workloads crossed galore celebrated JavaScript frameworks and technologies specified arsenic React, Angular, and Vue. Started by Apple, Speedometer is now nether nan guidance of Apple, Google, Intel, Microsoft, and Mozilla. On Speedometer, Comet had a people of 29.3, while Chrome 138, nan latest version, scored 34.3. Keep successful mind, however, arsenic a beta program, Comet contains codification that hasn't been optimized for velocity yet.

I'm sorry to study that immoderate of Comet's features are still not moving well. In particular, Comet Assistance promises it could do each kinds of neat things pinch my Gmail and Google Calendar accounts, specified arsenic answering emails, booking appointments connected my schedule, you know, nan accustomed "How AI will make your life easier stuff." Spoiler alert: It failed.

Also: I loved Arc browser and was skeptical of its agentic Dia replacement - until I tried it

Built connected Google's Chromium, it should activity smoothly pinch Google services. It doesn't. Specifically, while Perplexity Comet is designed to merge pinch Gmail and Google Calendar and automate associated tasks, I had a heck of a clip authenticating my Gmail relationship pinch it.

My problem was that Perplexity Connector and Google kept refusing to sync pinch each other. Even aft I sewage it nailed down, while Comet Assistant could read, summarize, and hunt emails aliases almanac events, it often grounded to execute much precocious actions for illustration sending emails, replying, aliases managing almanac invites. This is owed to conflicts pinch Google information restrictions, which forestall third-party devices from executing circumstantial actions connected a user's behalf without explicit, repeated authorization. In galore cases, Comet provided manual follow-up instructions, but that was a pain.

Of course, if privateness is simply a concern, you don't want to usage Comet astatine all. While it includes a autochthonal advertisement blocker retired of nan box, according to its privacy policy, "Your input and output, specified arsenic questions, prompts and different contented that you input, upload aliases taxable to nan Services, and nan output that you create, and immoderate collections aliases pages that you make utilizing nan Services" will beryllium kept by nan company. So, if you springiness it entree to your Google account, immoderate information pulled from it will beryllium successful Perplexity's hands arsenic well.

This should not beryllium a shock. If you usage AI, AI will usage your data. If you're consenting to make nan trade, immoderate AI strategy will make that woody pinch you.

I for illustration what Comet is trying to do, but it's conscionable not location yet. Give it time. I deliberation Perplexity will get it there.

In nan meantime, Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas has expansive dreams for Comet. At nan June Bloomberg Tech Summit, he said, "If people are successful nan browser, it's infinite retention. Everything successful nan hunt bar, everything connected nan caller tab page, everything you're doing connected nan sidecar, immoderate of nan pages you're in, these are each going to beryllium other queries per progressive user, arsenic good arsenic seeking caller users who conscionable are tired of bequest browsers, for illustration Chrome." Yes, you're not reference betwixt nan lines, Google and Chrome are nan target.

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