Perplexity.ai and Testing the Future of AI Generated Search Results

Tech commentator Shelly Palmer offered a ringing endorsement of a new AI extension that can replace Google search called Perplexity.ai and so I decided to give it a try. Instead of a list of links, starting with promoted ads, the search results from Perplexity summarize what it finds on the web. Of course, I started by Googling (Perplexing?) myself.

The results summary opens by describing me as "a prominent figure with diverse expertise." Ok, I like that. Unfortunately, it came to this conclusion because it had merged my profile with a respected Professor of biomedical imaging who shares my name. So, no - it's not perfect. Still the summarized results, removal of paid links and narrative style were very appealing. I can see why people would like this as an alternative to Google search.