NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang publicly stated that he uses Perplexity every day, a remark that introduced the product to many for the first time. However, if you adopt it solely based on celebrity endorsement, it is easy to remain unclear about what exactly makes it good and in which scenarios it is more suitable than Google or ChatGPT. This article aims to clarify this point.
What Is Perplexity?
Perplexity is an AI-powered search engine launched in late 2022, founded by a team from top AI institutions such as OpenAI and Meta. Its core product logic is simple: you ask a question, it searches the internet in real time, and then integrates information from multiple sources into a complete answer—with each specific piece of information accompanied by a source citation that you can click to verify the original text.
The difference from traditional search engines lies here: Google gives you a list of links for you to read yourself; Perplexity reads the information and directly provides you with the answer, along with telling you where the answer comes from.
The difference from ChatGPT is also clear: ChatGPT answers questions based on its training data, has a knowledge cutoff date, and does not provide source citations; Perplexity searches in real time, so the information is current, and every detail has a verifiable source.
Core Capabilities
Real-Time Answers with Citations
This is Perplexity’s most core capability. When you ask it a question, it:
- Issues multiple search requests in real time to gather information from different sources
- Reads and integrates the search results
- Generates a clearly structured answer, appending source numbers after each key piece of information
- Lists links to all reference sources below the answer
This workflow is valuable for scenarios requiring reliable information. You do not need to open ten tabs to read them one by one, nor do you need to worry about AI “hallucinating” data—because every piece of information has a source that can be directly verified.
Follow-Up Questions and Deep Dives
Perplexity supports multi-turn conversations, allowing you to follow up on the answers it provides. For example, you might first ask “What are the core differences between these two products?” and, after receiving the answer, ask “What is the pricing logic of the first product?” It will continue searching and answering while maintaining the context from previous turns.
This makes it not just a one-off query tool, but an assistant for deep exploration of a topic.
Multiple Search Modes
Perplexity offers different search scope settings:
- Web Search (default): Searches the entire internet
- Academic: Searches only academic databases (PubMed, arXiv, etc.), suitable for questions requiring academic sources
- YouTube: Searches video content, displaying relevant videos and summaries
- Reddit: Searches Reddit discussions, suitable for finding real users’ experiences and reviews
- Social Media: Searches latest discussions on platforms like X (Twitter)
This design is quite practical. For instance, if you want to understand the genuine reputation of a product, switching to Reddit mode yields discussions from real users rather than promotional copy from brand websites.
Pages: Generating Research Reports
Perplexity’s Pages feature can organize your exploration process into a formatted document containing titles, sections, and images, similar to a structured article. You can share it or continue editing on it. For scenarios requiring the presentation of research findings externally, this feature saves a significant amount of formatting time.
Deep Research
Pro users can use the Deep Research mode, where Perplexity autonomously plans a research path for a complex question, performs dozens of searches, reads multiple web pages, and ultimately generates a detailed research report. This feature is suitable for important decision-making scenarios requiring comprehensive information—such as choosing investment directions, researching competitors, or understanding a new field.
Where It Outperforms Google
When you need direct answers rather than a list of links: Asking “What are the common side effects of a certain drug?” yields a list of side effects directly from Perplexity, with notes citing the FDA or medical literature, whereas Google gives you a pile of links.
When you need comparative analysis: To compare two products, two solutions, or two companies, Perplexity synthesizes multiple sources to provide a comparison, while Google only gives you links for you to read yourself.
When tracking real-time developments: For the latest progress on a news event or the latest data in a certain market—Perplexity searches in real time, and its answers reflect the current situation.
When verifying a claim: Asking “Is this claim true?” prompts Perplexity to search relevant sources and provide an answer supported by evidence, rather than answering based on impressions from AI training data.
Where It Falls Short of ChatGPT
When needing creative writing or brainstorming: Perplexity’s strength is “finding information,” not “generating content.” Asking it to help you write an article or brainstorm product ideas will yield lower-quality output compared to ChatGPT or Claude.
When needing deep collaboration in long conversations: ChatGPT is better suited for long back-and-forth discussions and multi-round revisions; Perplexity is more oriented toward a Q&A mode.
When processing private documents: Uploading your own documents to ask questions is handled better by Claude or Kimi; document processing is not Perplexity’s core capability.
Pricing
- Free Plan: Unlimited searches, 5 Pro searches per day (including Deep Research and advanced AI models)
- Pro ($20/month): 300+ Pro searches per day, unlimited Deep Research, choice of GPT-4o or Claude 3.5 as the underlying model, file upload functionality
For daily use, the free plan’s search capabilities are sufficient. If you need to use Deep Research frequently or desire a stronger underlying model, the $20/month Pro version is reasonable.
Privacy and Usage in China
Perplexity may require a VPN to access within mainland China. Regarding privacy, it records your search history, and the Pro version offers stronger privacy options. If your queries involve sensitive content (such as trade secrets or personal information), you should take this into account.
Summary
Perplexity’s value proposition is straightforward: it helps you find reliable information faster. But it does so well that many users have genuinely changed their daily search habits—when they need to look something up or understand a topic, their first instinct is now to open Perplexity instead of Google.
If you frequently search for information, conduct research, or verify facts, it’s worth giving it a serious try.