Perplexity has unveiled a new feature for its Pro subscribers, enabling seamless shopping directly within its AI search engine. U.S.-based Pro members can now use a “Buy with Pro” button for eligible products, streamlining the checkout process by utilizing saved shipping and billing details.
Buy with Pro: A Simplified Shopping Experience
The new “Buy with Pro” option allows Pro users to purchase products without leaving Perplexity’s platform. All purchases made through this feature come with free shipping as a bonus for Pro subscribers. If a product doesn’t support this option, Perplexity redirects users to the merchant’s website to complete their purchase.
When asked about potential earnings from this feature, Perplexity spokesperson Sara Platnick clarified that the company currently does not receive any commission, emphasizing that “there’s no commercial element” tied to the feature.
Features for All Users
While the $20/month Pro plan unlocks exclusive perks like “Buy with Pro,” non-subscribers can also benefit from Perplexity’s enhanced AI shopping tools. This includes updated product cards that display an item’s image, price, and key features, along with AI-generated summaries of reviews.
Snap to Shop: Visual Product Search
Perplexity has also introduced “Snap to Shop,” a visual search tool that lets users upload a photo of a product to receive detailed information and recommendations. Initially available only to Pro subscribers, this feature functions similarly to Google Lens, making it easier to find items without needing a description or name.
Pro users already enjoy visual search capabilities for non-shopping-related queries, further enhancing the platform’s versatility.
Empowering Merchants
Perplexity is also expanding its offerings for merchants through a new program. This initiative provides sellers with valuable insights into search and shopping trends, increasing the likelihood of their products being recommended by Perplexity’s AI.
Key Highlights of Perplexity’s Shopping Experience
- One-Click Checkout: Pro users in the U.S. can use “Buy with Pro” to check out instantly for select products. Securely saved shipping and billing information ensures a smooth process, and all orders include free shipping.
- Snap to Shop: Users can take a picture of an item to discover relevant products quickly, even without a name or description.
- Enhanced Product Discovery: Perplexity’s unbiased product cards provide clear comparisons and details, helping users make confident purchasing decisions.
- Shopify Integration: Perplexity’s AI taps into Shopify’s ecosystem, offering up-to-date product details from Shopify-powered businesses that sell and ship to the U.S.
Future Expansion
Perplexity plans to extend its AI-powered shopping tools to additional markets after its U.S. launch. Stay tuned for more updates, features, and special offers as the platform continues to evolve.
Perplexity AI Nears $500M Funding Round at $9B Valuation
Perplexity AI, the generative AI search engine startup, is finalizing a $500 million funding round that would raise its valuation to $9 billion, according to a source familiar with the matter, as reported by CNBC. The round is being led by Institutional Venture Partners, a Silicon Valley-based investment firm.
This marks a significant leap for Perplexity, whose valuation was $3 billion in June and only $500 million at the start of the year. The company has been riding the wave of the generative AI boom, securing four funding rounds in 2023 alone.
Competing with Tech Giants
Perplexity operates in a competitive space alongside major players such as Google, Microsoft’s Bing, and OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT. OpenAI recently introduced a search feature within ChatGPT, enabling real-time web searches for sports scores, stock updates, news, and weather. This move intensifies competition, positioning OpenAI directly against Perplexity and established search engines.
Content Plagiarism Controversy
Despite its rapid growth, Perplexity has faced accusations of plagiarizing content from media outlets. In October, The New York Times issued a cease-and-desist letter, alleging that Perplexity scraped its content to generate AI answers. The startup has denied these claims.
Publisher Revenue Sharing Program
In response to content concerns, Perplexity launched a revenue-sharing model for publishers in July. Under this model, when the platform cites articles to generate answers and earns ad revenue, it shares a percentage with the publishers. Early participants in the “Publishers Program” include prominent outlets like Fortune, Time, Entrepreneur, and The Texas Tribune.
Dmitry Shevelenko, Perplexity’s chief business officer, explained that publishers receive increased revenue shares if multiple articles are cited in a single answer. The initiative, in development since January, aims to enroll 30 publishers by year-end.
Growth Milestones
Perplexity’s user base and query volume have seen exponential growth. By August, the app had surpassed 2 million downloads, and it now handles over 230 million queries monthly. U.S.-based queries alone have grown eightfold in the past year, as noted in a pitch deck shared with potential advertisers.
The Wall Street Journal first broke the news of Perplexity’s latest funding round, signaling strong investor confidence as the company continues to scale.
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