Perplexity AI: Revolutionizing Search with Ethical Concerns and Promising Results

Perplexity Is Problematic, but It Might Be OK

Key Takeaways Perplexity AI faces accusations for bypassing robot.txt instructions on websites. BrightEdge study shows Perplexity is just as effective, or better, than Google at referring people to relevant sites. Perplexity's feature allows sharing information behind paywalls, leading to a need for compromise to ensure fair practices. ✕ Remove Ads I've said many times that I think Perplexity is the best AI chatbot out there at the moment, especially for research. I admit I'm biased when it comes to the complex ethics of AI because I want to see it succeed. Perplexity has seen its share of accusations, but a recently released study is giving me renewed hope that it will all work out. The Robot.txt Problem Nearly all AI chatbots get accused of consuming large amounts of water and power or face intense scrutiny over how they collect data to train the model. Perplexity AI's accusations are a bit more specific than those generalized arguments. Many websites contain an instruction, robot.txt, in the code that tells AI, bots, or other web crawlers to go no further. Ignoring this command is not necessarily illegal, but the command has been more or less followed since the 90s. Perplexity has been accused of bypassing (or utilizing 3rd party bots who bypass) the robot.txt instruction to get their information. ✕ Remove Ads Perhaps this practice of leaving no stone unturned is part of the reason why Perplexity's results are so good. However, sometimes the robot.txt instruction protects information behind a paywall or on a site that expects users to sign up and pay for access. By ignoring it, information is included in Perplexity's results allegedly from behind those paywalls. Major publishers obviously take issue with these practices. The BrightEdge Study Web publishers and internet marketers have collectively invested millions of dollars in researching how to get discovered or suggested to consumers by Google or other web search engines. Numbers are important, but it's not just about getting content in front of the most people. It's about getting in front of the right people. ✕ Remove Ads A person searching for a list of console games might be interested in other gaming info, but it's not likely they'll be interested in an article about aquarium fish. Websites belonging to small privately owned car dealerships might want to be in the list of results from the search "car dealerships near me," but a Virginia dealership likely wouldn't benefit from a click by a user in California. At the outset of this latest AI revolution, it was unclear if existing internet marketing practices would survive in the face of AI search engines like Perplexity. Even if people aren't starting their search in AI chatbots like SearchGPT or Perplexity, they still often receive an AI overview result from Google or Bing, which has its own sources listed. One of the reasons web publishers are extra vigilant regarding the practices of AI companies is more than just reporting allegedly stolen content. It's about who gets to steer web traffic around the internet, and a perceived need to know just where web traffic is going. ✕ Remove Ads That's where the BrightEdge study comes in. BrightEdge produces data that publishers use to determine how to get content in front of target consumers. In April, BrightEdge released a study showing that Perplexity is just as good as, or better, than Google at referring people to sites that correlate to their search terms. This is great news for everyone! Consumers already knew that Perplexity provided great results! However, now there's proof. Consumers do click through Perplexity's results directly to the listed sources. Web publishers, hopefully, can relax just a bit, knowing that Perplexity is bringing them just as much or more traffic than Google. Can't We All Just Get Along? ✕ Remove Ads There's still the problem of paywalls. Perplexity's Pages feature allows users to publish their results in a beautifully formatted report that's shareable on Perplexity's platform (not available off Perplexity). This means that users can see information normally hidden behind the paywall of a content publisher, allegedly sometimes lifting entire articles verbatim, and sharing it. Even though the sources are still credited on Pages, I'm afraid this just won't be tolerated. Even though publishers claim the problem is that Perplexity circumvents robot.txt, that code isn't exclusively used just for paywalls. In fact, in light of the BrightEdge study, breaking that "rule" is making everyone money by leading traffic straight from Perplexity to the content they want. The problem is when it circumvents the paywalls. In that instance, the user could avoid the site and therefore evade paying for that content. ✕ Remove Ads I'm no hostage negotiator, but it seems like there's room for a compromise here. Perhaps Perplexity should be allowed to refer a steady stream of web traffic regardless of the robot.txt instruction as long as it doesn't go behind paywalls. AI isn't going anywhere, and nothing has slowed it down thus far. Smart regulations and reasonable compromise could make the road less bumpy.

I've Been Opposed to AI, but This App Is So Good I'm Changing My Mind

Quick LinksWhat Is Perplexity AI? How Perplexity Is Different from Other Desktop AI How Do I Use Perplexity AI? Other Ways to Use Perplexity Why Perplexity Has Me Changing My Mind About AI Like many people who write for a living, I'm notoriously anti-AI. However, a new tool from Perplexity is forcing me to reconsider the benefits of using AI as part of my productivity workflow. ✕ Remove Ads What Is Perplexity AI? Perplexity AI is billed as the "Swiss Army Knife of information discovery and curiosity." Really, that's a fancy way of saying you can ask it questions, and, using its magic artificial intelligence superpowers, it will scour a seemingly infinite database to help you find the answers. Perplexity offers a two-tiered service, with both a paid and a free version. If you've used something like OpenAI's ChatGPT, you're likely familiar with this type of interface. On the other hand, if you're not familiar, we've put together a guide to help you better understand how artificial intelligence works. ✕ Remove Ads The free tier of Perplexity AI allows for basic questioning, email and article summaries, and code creation. Perplexity also provides up-to-date source information so you can avoid the dreaded AI hallucination issue. However, when you subscribe to the $20/month or $200/year Pro tier, things get more interesting. For example, a pro subscription means you can switch AI models from Perplexity's default to something like Claude 3.5 Sonnet, Sonar Large, GPT-4o, or Grok-2. Pro Searches are also more detailed and precise than the free Quick Searches. Pro also entitles you to upgraded support, an exclusive Discord, and the ability to upload unlimited documents for analysis. How Perplexity Is Different from Other Desktop AI ✕ Remove Ads There are heaps of generative AI chatbots, all with different pros and cons. However, a few things set Perplexity AI apart from some other desktop AI assistants -- at least for me. First is its built-in citation functionality. Perplexity lists several references at the top of each query when it provides an answer for you. As someone who does extensive research, I appreciate the ability to keep track of any source material Perplexity finds so I can vet it before using it. Second, Perplexity also updates its information in real time, which means you'll get relevant answers to your questions and answers populated with the most up-to-date information. Finally, there's the Copilot feature -- an interactive search assistant that asks clarifying questions to help personalize the answers to your search queries. It's like having someone personally invested in finding the right answer for you. ✕ Remove Ads Overall, the feature set is pretty rich. However, these few features are just the most prominent. Honestly, the quickest way to learn everything Perplexity can do is to try it for yourself. How Do I Use Perplexity AI? I use Perplexity in a few ways that might offer you some insight. Product Research Recently, I was looking for a new harness for one of my dogs. Instead of trying to comb through several sites, I asked Perplexity to recommend the best dog harness in the US at the time. Perplexity not only found a great harness backed by various publications, but it also suggested a harness that I probably wouldn't have purchased had I just searched Amazon. ✕ Remove Ads Distilling Evidence-Based Information Last week, I asked Perplexity to help design a science-backed, evidence-based workout program. It came back with a pretty comprehensive list of suggestions. Could I have compiled all the science and eventually found best practices myself? Maybe. No doubt that would have taken me a significant chunk of time, though. I asked Perplexity to assist, instead focusing on the information I needed and giving me a targeted list of credible sources I could review. By doing so, I saved myself countless hours I might have wasted just reading and analyzing extraneous information that didn't fit my science-backed criterion. A desktop AI assistant will not replace the advice of a board-certified physician. Before you embark on any AI-generated fitness program, you should always consult your doctor. ✕ Remove Ads Website Analysis Because Perplexity is primarily a predictive tool, it's great for textual analysis. This means it can find all manner of commonalities on the web if you ask it the right questions. I frequently ask Perplexity to generate a list of common SEO keywords on a topic, for example. Doing so helps me optimize my content to reach readers like you a bit more easily. Other Ways to Use Perplexity Ideally, Perplexity is best at sorting and organizing information in a way that allows for easy digestion. If you need to buy a new couch or do academic research on the best breakfast foods, the tool is an impeccable help. It doesn't do the work for you, per se, but it does cut some fluff and some of the time it takes to sort through information. ✕ Remove Ads If you're going to use it, I'd suggest you replace your standard Google search with the tool for a week and see if the answers you get are more or less helpful. Moreover, Perplexity works better when you provide specific qualifiers in your queries. Qualifiers such as "You're an AKC certified dog trainer" or "Help me find evidence-based research" are exceptionally useful. We've previously compiled a list of effective generative AI prompting techniques to maximize tools like Perplexity. Why Perplexity Has Me Changing My Mind About AI So we're clear: Perplexity isn't sponsoring this post. I just really like its AI tool. I've even purchased a year of the Pro subscription because I like it so much. You may not feel the same way I do. Before encountering this AI assistant, I was horrified at the prospect of installing AI into my workflows. This is mainly because, as someone who writes for the web, I get a little bristly when it's suggested that AI will eventually replace me and the craft I've spent decades honing. ✕ Remove Ads However, in holding to that bias against AI tools, I failed to see I'm not making myself more obsolete by using them. Instead, I've found Perplexity AI makes me more efficient and better informed. That means I get to do more of the work I want while avoiding some of the more time-consuming tasks I don't.