Perplexity has officially launched Comet, its first AI-powered web browser, signaling a direct challenge to Google’s dominance in online information access. Initially available to subscribers of Perplexity’s $200-per-month Max plan and a select group of invitees, Comet integrates Perplexity’s AI search engine as its default feature, emphasizing AI-generated summaries of search results.
A key component of Comet is the Comet Assistant, a new AI agent designed to automate routine tasks within the browser. This assistant can summarize emails and calendar events, manage tabs, and navigate web pages, accessible via a sidecar that allows it to understand and interact with open web content. Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas has heavily promoted Comet, viewing it as crucial in the company’s competition with Google and a step towards creating an “operating system with which you can do almost everything.”
Comet enters a competitive browser market, with Google Chrome and Apple’s Safari holding significant shares. Other AI-powered browsers, such as The Browser Company’s Dia, also offer similar functionalities, and OpenAI is reportedly considering its own browser. Despite the crowded landscape, Perplexity’s strong growth—reporting 780 million queries in May 2025 and over 20% month-over-month growth—suggests it could gain traction.
While the Comet Assistant proved helpful for simple tasks like summarizing emails and calendar events, more complex requests, such as booking airport parking, revealed limitations, including “hallucinations” where the AI provided incorrect information. This highlights a common challenge for AI agents, requiring significant user data access for full functionality. Nevertheless, Comet’s integrated AI capabilities offer new potential in the evolving browser landscape.
