Perplexity AI

What is Perplexity AI?

Perplexity AI is a groundbreaking alternative to traditional search engines, offering a conversational interface where you can ask questions and receive concise, accurate answers backed by a curated set of sources. With contextual awareness and personalization, Perplexity learns your interests and preferences over time, making it an intuitive and powerful productivity tool. Its mission is to provide a knowledgeable assistant-like experience, saving you time and energy in various use cases.

To achieve this, Perplexity’s advanced answer engine processes your questions and tasks, utilizing predictive text capabilities to generate useful responses from multiple sources, and summarizing the results in a concise and helpful way.

By combining natural language processing with expertly curated sources, Perplexity AI delivers a unique and reliable conversational experience that revolutionizes the way you search for information online.

Core Features

1. Natural Language Understanding: Perplexity AI is designed to comprehend queries in natural language, allowing you to ask questions as they would in a conversation. It can interpret the context and intent behind each query, providing relevant and contextual responses.
2. Real-Time Information: Perplexity AI prioritizes delivering up-to-date information by continuously crawling and indexing the web. This ensures that you receive the most recent and accurate information available.
3. Personalized Answers: The platform learns from each user’s interactions and preferences, tailoring its responses to provide more personalized and relevant information over time.
4. Inline Citations: Perplexity AI cites the sources it uses to compile its answers, allowing you to verify the information and explore further if needed.
5. Multimodal Inputs: In addition to text queries, Perplexity AI can process various input formats, including images, PDFs, and code snippets, making it a versatile tool for different use cases.
6. Focus Modes: You can choose from different focus modes, such as “Academic” for scholarly articles, “Writing” for text and code generation, or “Wolfram Alpha” for computational queries.

Pros & Cons

Pros	Cons
Offers a range of LLM models catering to different needs and preferences	Occasional crashes or instability in threads, requiring users to restart
Allows grouping of threads into folders (Collections) for better organization	Limited support for customizations, such as blocking certain domains in searches or calling image generation models
Smooth text generation with a consistent and easy-to-read display	Extensions are not available in some web browsers like Firefox, limiting accessibility
Follow-up questions feature helps refine results and provide more detailed answers	Reliance on third-party APIs like Brave Search API for certain functionalities, potentially affecting performance and reliability
Active community support and resources available, such as Discord channels and tutorials	Pricing model may not be suitable for everyone, especially those with limited budgets or specific usage needs

Pricing

Perplexity AI offers a freemium pricing model with the following options:

1. Free Plan: This plan provides basic search functionalities and access to all search modes, including “All,” “Academic,” “Writing,” “Wolfram Alpha,” “YouTube,” and “Reddit.”
2. Perplexity Pro (Paid Plan): This paid plan is available for $20 per month or $200 per year. It offers additional features such as the ability to ask clarifying questions, upload and analyze local files (including images), generate images using AI, and access to an API.

How to Use Perplexity AI

You can start using Perplexity AI without creating an account by visiting their website or downloading the mobile app. However, to access the full range of features and personalization, you’ll need to sign up for a free or paid account.

1. Visit the Perplexity AI website (www.perplexity.ai) or download the mobile app from Android or iPhone.
2. Click on the “Sign Up” button. Then choose to either Continue with Google, Apple, Single Sign-on (SAML SSO), or by entering your email address.
3. Confirm your email.
4. Once signed in, you can start asking questions or using the various features and modes available based on your plan.

How to Enable Dark Mode

Perplexity AI offers a clean and modern interface that can be customized to suit your preferences. If you prefer a darker aesthetic or find it easier on your eyes, you can easily enable dark mode with just a few clicks.

1. Locate the gear icon next to your username and click on it to open the Settings menu.
2. By default, the Appearance setting may be set to “System,” which means it will adapt to your system’s light or dark mode preference.
3. To enable dark mode, simply click on the Appearance option and select “Dark” from the dropdown menu.

Once you’ve selected the “Dark” option, the Perplexity AI interface will instantly switch to a sleek, high-contrast dark mode. The background will turn dark, and the text and interface elements will be displayed in lighter colors, creating a more subdued and eye-friendly experience.

• If you ever want to revert to the default system appearance, simply go back to the Appearance setting and select “System.”
• The dark mode setting is tied to your Perplexity AI account, so your preference will be remembered across devices.
• Some users find dark mode easier on the eyes, especially when working in low-light environments or for extended periods.

By following these simple steps, you can easily customize the Perplexity AI interface to suit your visual preferences and create a more comfortable and enjoyable experience.

Perplexity AI Search Focus

Perplexity AI offers a powerful “Search Focus” feature that allows you to refine your search results by specifying the type of sources you want to prioritize.

The search focus feature provides several focus options to choose from:

• All: Search across the entire Internet
• Academic: Search in published academic papers
• Writing: Generate text or chat without searching the web
• Wolfram|Alpha: Computational knowledge engine
• Youtube: Discover and watch videos
• Reddit: Search for discussions and opinions

This feature allows you to narrow down your search to specific domains, websites or types of sources in order to get more targeted and relevant results for your query.

When you select a particular focus area like “Academic” for example, Perplexity AI will prioritize retrieving information from scholarly publications, research papers and authoritative sources within that domain. This allows you to get higher quality, expert-level information tailored to that specific subject area or source type, instead of general web results.

The focused search queries the selected domain comprehensively to find the most pertinent information to answer your question accurately. It helps filter out noise and low-quality sources that may be present in a broad web search.

• All: Use this option for general, broad searches across the entire internet. It provides a comprehensive overview by searching diverse sources.
• Academic: Choose this focus when you need to search specifically within published academic papers, journals, and scholarly sources for in-depth research or exploring scientific/academic topics.
• Writing: Select this mode when you want Perplexity to generate text or engage in open-ended conversations without searching the web. It’s useful for creative writing, brainstorming ideas, or getting AI-generated content.
• Wolfram|Alpha: Use this focus to leverage computational knowledge engines and databases for factual, structured information on various topics.
• YouTube: Choose this option when you want to discover and watch relevant video content from YouTube, especially for visual learning, tutorials, or topics that benefit from video explanations.
• Reddit: Use the Reddit focus to search for discussions, opinions, and insights from online communities on Reddit, particularly for gathering user experiences, niche interests, or crowdsourced information.

The choice depends on your specific information needs, research goals, and the nature of your query. Experiment with different focuses to find the most relevant and valuable results for your tasks

So in essence, the Focus feature curates Perplexity’s powerful AI capabilities by allowing you to pinpoint the specific information domains and source types most relevant for precise and authoritative answers on any topic.

Perplexity AI Icons

Perplexity AI provides a set of intuitive icons that allow you to interact with and refine your queries, manage sources, and ensure accurate and relevant responses.

1. Share: Allows you to share the response via various channels like email, messaging apps, social media etc.
2. Rewrite: Re-runs your query using a different AI model. This feature is only available for Perplexity Pro users.
3. Copy: Copies the full response text, including cited sources, to your clipboard.
4. Edit Query: Lets you rephrase or modify your original query. Perplexity will then provide a new response based on the edited query.
5. For the three dots menu:
   • (View Sources): Shows the sources Perplexity used to generate the answer. You can view and remove any sources you don’t want included.
   • (Report): Use this to flag an inaccurate answer, which helps improve Perplexity’s response quality over time.

By understanding the meaning and functionality of these icons, you can effectively interact with Perplexity AI, refine your queries, manage sources, and ensure accurate and relevant responses.

Perplexity Pro

Perplexity Pro is the premium subscription plan offered by Perplexity AI. This paid plan unlocks a suite of powerful features and capabilities designed to enhance the user experience and provide more comprehensive and accurate search results.

1. Unlimited Pro Searches

One of the key benefits of Perplexity Pro is the ability to perform practically unlimited Pro searches.

Pro searches are Perplexity AI’s interactive search companion that excels at handling ambiguous or complex queries.

Unlike traditional search engines that may struggle with nuanced or context-dependent questions, Pro searches engage in a conversational manner, asking clarifying questions when needed and delivering extensively researched answers with significantly improved accuracy.

With Perplexity Pro, you can make over 300 Pro searches per day, allowing them to explore a wide range of topics and dive deep into their areas of interest without any limitations. This feature is particularly valuable for researchers, students, professionals, and anyone seeking in-depth and reliable information on specific subjects.

2. Attach Images and Files

Another feature of Perplexity Pro is the ability to attach and analyze various file types, including PDFs, CSVs, and images. On the free account, you’re permitted 3 uploads/attachments per day.

This functionality opens up a world of possibilities for users who need to extract insights from documents, data files, or visual content.

By uploading files to Perplexity AI, you can explore their contents by asking questions using cutting-edge language models like Claude 3 and GPT-4 Turbo. These advanced models are capable of understanding and interpreting complex information, making it easier to extract relevant details, identify patterns, and gain valuable insights from the uploaded files.

3. Powerful AI Models

Perplexity Pro subscribers gain access to a range of powerful AI models, including OpenAI’s GPT-4 Turbo, Anthropic’s Claude 3 (both Opus and Sonnet variants), Perplexity’s in-house “Experimental” model based on open-source models, and Mistral’s Large model.

You can upgrade the default model of your choice in your settings, allowing them to tailor the search experience to their specific needs:

• GPT-4 Turbo is renowned for its incredible level of accuracy and human-like reasoning capabilities, making it an excellent choice for professional and academic tasks.
• Claude 3, on the other hand, is praised for its natural-sounding responses and exceptional performance with file uploads.
• Perplexity’s Experimental model is optimized for conciseness and less restrictive responses.
• Mistral’s Large model excels in complex multilingual reasoning tasks, including text understanding, transformation, and code generation.

Additionally, Perplexity Pro users have the option to rewrite an answer with a different model within a thread, providing flexibility and the ability to compare and contrast the outputs of various models.

4. API Credit

Perplexity Pro subscribers receive $5 in API credit every month, which can be used with the pplx-api. This feature is particularly valuable for developers and those interested in exploring the capabilities of the latest large language models (LLMs).

The pplx-api provides cutting-edge access to a wide range of LLMs, including Perplexity’s in-house models (7b and 70b), top-tier open-source models like Mistral 7b, Mixtral 7x8b, and Llama 2 13/70b, as well as Perplexity’s own Sonar models.

With continuous updates and no knowledge cutoffs, the pplx-api ensures that you have access to the most up-to-date and advanced language models available.

5. Perplexity Pro Support

As a Perplexity Pro subscriber, you gain access to exclusive support channels that provide faster assistance. This includes a dedicated Pro channel on Perplexity AI’s Discord server, where yoy can connect with the team and other Pro users, as well as direct access to the support team through Intercom.

Inquiries submitted through Intercom are prioritized, and the team aims to provide a response within 1 to 2 business days, ensuring that Pro subscribers receive quicker assistance compared to standard support emails.

6. Flexible Usage and Billing

Perplexity Pro offers a flexible usage model, allowing users to make the most of their subscription. The daily limit of 600 uses includes both Pro searches and advanced model queries.

It’s important to note that using the default model does not impact the daily count, allowing you to use it as much as needed without affecting their allocated Pro searches and advanced model queries.

Overall, Perplexity Pro is a robust and feature-rich offering that caters to the needs of a wide range of users, from researchers and professionals to developers and AI enthusiasts.

How to Generate Images with Perplexity AI

To generate images with Perplexity AI, particularly if you are using the Perplexity Pro version on a web browser, you can follow these steps:

1. Access the Image Generation Feature: Once you have completed a search or query, look for the “Generate Image” option. This should be visible in the right column next to your search response on the web browser interface.
2. Choose a Style: Click on the “Generate Image” button. You will then see options for some pre-written styles. If you want to customize the image further to your liking, you can apply your own prompt and give additional instructions by clicking on the icon next to “Choose a style”.
3. Customization and Model Selection: After selecting or customizing the style, you can also choose from different models available for image generation. Perplexity AI offers models like Playground V2.5, DALLE 3, and Stable Diffusion XL. You can switch between these models in the settings area under the Pro section.
4. Generate the Image: After setting up your preferences, click to generate the image. You will need to wait for the image to be processed and generated.
5. View and Edit the Generated Image: Once the image is generated, it will be displayed at the top of the column. If necessary, you can apply additional prompting or pick a pre-written style on top of the generated image by clicking on the icon next to “Choose a style” for further customization.
6. Usage Limitations: Note that there is a limit to how many images you can generate per day. For Perplexity Pro users, the maximum number of images one can generate per day is 50.
7. Commercial Use: It’s important to remember that the images generated through Perplexity AI are intended for personal, non-commercial use only, unless otherwise specified in the Terms of Service.

This feature is designed to complement your search responses with visual representations, enhancing the overall user experience by integrating textual and visual data. However, it’s currently available only for Perplexity Pro users and only accessible via the web browser interface.

Perplexity AI Chrome Extension

The Perplexity AI Chrome extension brings the power of an advanced AI assistant right into your web browser. Follow these steps to get started:

Installing the Extension

Getting the Perplexity AI extension up and running in your Chrome browser is quick and easy. Just follow these steps:

1. Open the Google Chrome browser on your computer. Chrome is required to use the Perplexity AI extension.
2. Go to the Chrome Web Store. The Web Store has thousands of extensions you can browse.
3. In the search box, type “Perplexity AI” to find the official extension.
4. Click the “Add to Chrome” button on the extension’s listing page.
5. A popup window will appear, click “Add extension” to approve and install it.

Once installed, the extension will be ready to help summarize web pages and answer your questions.

Using the Extension

With the extension installed, you can start taking advantage of its helpful features right away:

1. Navigate to any webpage you need assistance with summarizing or asking questions about.
2. Look for the Perplexity AI icon, which will appear in your Chrome toolbar to the right of the address bar.
3. To get a summary of the page’s main points and core content, click the icon and select “Summarize Page”.
4. To ask Perplexity a question related to the page, click the icon and type your query into the search box, then hit enter.

Whether summarizing or asking questions, the Perplexity AI extension makes it simple to get AI-powered insights on any web content.

Perplexity AI Mobile App

The Perplexity AI mobile app brings the power of an advanced AI assistant right to your smartphone or tablet. Follow these steps to get started:

1. Installing the App

Getting the Perplexity app on your iOS or Android device only takes a few taps:

1. On your iOS or Android smartphone or tablet, open the official App Store or Google Play Store app.
2. Use the search functionality to find “Perplexity AI” and look for the official app listing.
3. Tap the “Get” or “Install” button to download and install the Perplexity app on your device.

With the app installed, you’re ready to start using Perplexity AI’s capabilities on your mobile device.

2. Setting Up

Before you can ask questions, you’ll need to get your account set up:

1. Once installed, open the Perplexity AI app. You’ll need to create a new account or log in.
2. Follow the sign up process to register for a new Perplexity account with your email and a password.
3. If you already have an account, simply enter your existing credentials on the log in screen.
4. The app may request certain permissions, like access to your microphone for voice search. Review and allow these.

With your account created and permissions granted, you can now start using all of Perplexity’s features.

3. Asking Questions

One of the core capabilities of the Perplexity app is being able to ask questions and get accurate answers.

1. To ask Perplexity a question, tap on the microphone icon to use voice search, or the text input field to type.
2. If using voice, simply ask your question out loud after the mic activates. For text, type out your query.
3. Perplexity’s answer will be displayed in the main app window. You can scroll to read it fully.

Whether using voice or text input, getting answers from the AI is fast and easy.

4. Viewing History

Perplexity automatically keeps a record of your past questions and received answers, so you can refer back anytime:

1. Your past questions and Perplexity’s responses are saved in your history. Tap the “Library” icon to view this.
2. You’ll see a reverse chronological list of your queries. Browse through to find previous items of interest.
3. Tap on any question in the history to re-open the full question and response from Perplexity.

Your query history makes it simple to revisit answers you’ve received or re-ask previous questions.

Tips for Using Perplexity AI Effectively

To truly harness the full potential of Perplexity AI, it’s essential to understand and implement best practices.

By following these tips, you’ll be able to engage with Perplexity AI more effectively, unlocking a world of knowledge and insights tailored to your specific needs and preferences.

1. Be Specific: Frame your queries as clearly and concisely as possible to help Perplexity AI better understand your intent and provide more relevant responses.
2. Provide Context: If your query is related to a specific topic or domain, provide some context upfront to help Perplexity AI tailor its response accordingly.
3. Explore Focus Modes: Experiment with different focus modes to find the one that best suits your needs, whether it’s academic research, creative writing, or computational queries.
4. Verify Information: While Perplexity AI aims to provide accurate information, it’s always a good practice to verify the cited sources and cross-check important information from reputable sources.
5. Provide Feedback: Perplexity AI is continuously improving, so don’t hesitate to provide feedback or report any inaccuracies you encounter. This will help the platform enhance its capabilities over time.
6. Search Smart: Use keywords or file uploads based on your needs. For in-depth context, upload files, or keep it simple with 2-3 keywords for more concise answers.
7. Personalize Your AI Profile: Adjust settings like language, output format, and tone in your AI Profile. As you update it, Perplexity becomes more personalized to your preferences.
8. Customize Privacy and Collaborate: By default, your threads are private, but you can share them publicly or use threads and collections for teamwork or shared research. Add prompts to an entire collection and tailor it to your needs.

By following these tips and leveraging the powerful features of Perplexity AI, you can unlock a more efficient and personalized way of accessing and consuming information across various domains.

Perplexity AI vs. ChatGPT

Determining which platform is “better” between Perplexity AI and ChatGPT depends on your specific needs and preferences. Here’s a breakdown to help you decide:

Perplexity AI:

• Focused on search and productivity: Perplexity AI is designed to be a comprehensive search engine with advanced AI capabilities. It aims to provide precise and accurate responses to user queries, making it suitable for tasks that require finding specific information quickly.
• Versatile features: Perplexity AI offers various features such as content generation, mobile app support, Chrome extension, problem-solving abilities, and more. These features cater to different use cases, including research, content creation, and problem-solving.
• User-friendly interface: With a user-friendly interface and intuitive navigation, Perplexity AI is accessible to both beginners and experienced users. It offers a smooth experience for interacting with AI-powered search capabilities.

ChatGPT:

• Focused on conversation and text generation: ChatGPT is primarily designed for generating human-like text responses and engaging in conversational interactions. It excels in tasks that involve generating creative content, answering open-ended questions, and simulating dialogue.
• Flexible and creative: ChatGPT’s strength lies in its flexibility and creativity in generating text. It can be used for a wide range of tasks, including writing, storytelling, brainstorming, and more. Users can interact with ChatGPT in a conversational manner, exploring various topics and ideas.
• Rich language capabilities: ChatGPT leverages large language models trained on vast datasets, enabling it to understand and generate text across diverse topics and contexts. It can provide nuanced responses and adapt to different writing styles and tones.

Ultimately, the “better” platform depends on your specific requirements. If you need a tool primarily for search and productivity tasks, Perplexity AI might be the better choice. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a conversational AI platform with a focus on text generation and creative exploration, ChatGPT could be more suitable. Consider your use case, preferences, and the features offered by each platform to make an informed decision.

Conclusion

What makes Perplexity so refreshing is how it cuts through the noise with nuance and contextual savvy that feels distinctly human. This AI companion doesn’t just respond to keywords but understands the intent behind your queries.

The true beauty of Perplexity, however, lies in its versatility as an all-in-one productivity partner. Researchers, writers, professionals – folks from all walks can find value in this powerful suite of AI-driven capabilities.