Perplexity CEO Says AI Browser Comet Can Replace New Hires
CEO Arvind Srinivas says Comet, now free to all users, is built to automate white-collar work and boost productivity across businesses.
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Indian-American Arvind Srinivas co-founded startup Perplexity AI said its new Comet browser could help companies improve productivity and limit the need for new hires by serving as a self-directed digital assistant that automates everyday tasks.
“Instead of hiring one more person on your team, you could just use Comet to supplement all the work you’re doing,” Srinivas, the company’s cofounder and chief executive officer, said in an interview with CNBC’s Squawk Box. He described the product as a “true personal assistant” capable of drafting emails, scheduling meetings, and organizing information without user intervention.
The statement comes as the San Francisco-based startup makes Comet available free to all users, extending access beyond its Pro and Max subscription tiers.
The AI-powered browser, introduced in July for paid users, integrates search, summarization, and task automation features intended to let users query, process, and act on web data in real time.
Backed by Jeff Bezos, SoftBank’s Vision Fund, and Nvidia, Perplexity is valued at about $20 billion.
The company said Comet is designed to handle repetitive knowledge-work tasks and augment corporate workflows, forming what Srinivas called “the extra team member you don’t have to hire.”
He added that future iterations of the tool would perform work “even when you sleep.”
Perplexity also launched Comet Plus, a $5-a-month premium tier that offers access to licensed news content from CNN, The Washington Post, and Condé Nast. Participating publishers will receive compensation based on user engagement and content indexing, with industry estimates suggesting payouts of up to $42.5 million.
The company is expanding rapidly in India, one of its largest markets by traffic.
Perplexity has partnered with Bharti Airtel to provide the telecom’s 360 million customers a complimentary one-year subscription to Perplexity Pro. It also plans to establish an engineering hub in the country to support product development.
Analysts said the move underscores how AI startups are racing to embed autonomous capabilities into everyday work tools, blurring the line between software and staff.
For Perplexity, offering Comet for free positions it as both a productivity platform and a test of whether businesses are ready to trust browsers that act, not just answer.
