Perplexity

Perplexity is an AI-powered answer engine that responds to questions with concise, written summaries instead of a list of blue links. Each answer cites the web sources it draws from, letting users check the underlying material, and follow-up questions build on earlier context in a conversational thread.

It is aimed at researchers, students, professionals, and everyday users who want quick, sourced answers, and it offers focus modes for tasks like academic search, coding, and finance. Features include real-time web browsing, file and document analysis, a Spaces workspace for organizing research, and access to multiple underlying language models on higher tiers.

Founded in 2022 and headquartered in San Francisco, Perplexity competes with traditional search engines and other AI assistants. It runs on a freemium model, with a free tier for standard searches and a Pro subscription that adds more powerful models, deeper research, and expanded usage limits.