Perplexity

Perplexity is an AI-powered search engine that combines the conversational capabilities of large language models with real-time web search to deliver accurate, cited answers to complex questions. Unlike traditional search engines that return links, Perplexity synthesizes information from multiple sources and presents clear, referenced responses.

The platform excels at research tasks — it can search the web, academic papers, and news in real-time, then compile findings into structured answers with inline citations. Users can ask follow-up questions in a conversational thread, progressively drilling deeper into any topic. The Pro Search feature performs multi-step reasoning, breaking complex queries into sub-questions for more thorough results.

Key features include conversational search with citations, Pro Search for multi-step reasoning, Focus modes (Web, Academic, Writing, Math, Video), file upload for document analysis, Collections for organizing research, and Spaces for team collaboration. Perplexity supports multiple AI models including Claude, GPT, and its own fine-tuned models.

Perplexity is available on web, iOS, Android, and as a Chrome extension. The free tier provides limited Pro Searches per day, while paid plans unlock higher limits and access to premium models.