In a significant move poised to disrupt the established web browser market, AI search company Perplexity has made its highly anticipated AI-native browser, "Comet," available for free to all users. Previously exclusive to paying subscribers on tiers costing up to $200 per month, the decision to eliminate the price barrier signals an aggressive strategy to challenge the dominance of incumbents like Google Chrome and redefine the everyday internet experience around artificial intelligence.[1][2][3] The release moves Comet from a premium, niche product to a mainstream contender, betting that users are ready to trade traditional web surfing for a more conversational and automated interaction with the digital world. The browser is now available for download on Windows, macOS, and iOS, with an Android version expected to follow shortly.[1] This launch is not merely about offering another alternative; it represents a fundamental challenge to the established order of information discovery and online task management.[4]

Comet is engineered from the ground up to be an "agent browser," transforming the user from an active clicker and searcher into a strategic delegator.[5] Built on the open-source Chromium engine, it maintains a familiar interface and compatibility with the vast library of existing Chrome extensions, easing the transition for new users.[6][7] However, its core distinction lies in the deep integration of Perplexity's AI.[8] At the heart of the experience is a persistent AI assistant, accessible via a sidebar, that provides context-aware support on any webpage.[6][3] This assistant can summarize lengthy articles and even videos, draft emails, answer follow-up questions, and generate content without requiring the user to switch tabs.[7][9] Beyond answering queries, Comet is designed with "agentic AI" capabilities, allowing it to autonomously perform multi-step tasks.[10][11] Users can issue commands in natural language to have the browser compare product prices across different sites, book meetings, or fill out complex forms, streamlining workflows that previously required significant manual effort.[6] To combat the perennial issue of tab overload, the browser also introduces "workspaces," a feature designed to help users organize tabs, tasks, and projects, thereby maintaining context and boosting productivity during complex online activities.[6]

The strategic decision to make Comet freely available is a direct assault on the browser market long dominated by a few major players. By removing the cost barrier, Perplexity is employing a classic user acquisition strategy aimed at capturing significant market share and shifting user habits away from entrenched defaults like Chrome and Safari.[12] This move intensifies the brewing "AI browser wars," where the new battleground is not speed or design, but the intelligence and utility of integrated AI.[5] Comet now competes directly with Google's own AI integrations in Chrome, The Browser Company's Dia, and Brave's Leo AI.[1][3] While the browser itself is now free, Perplexity's business strategy appears to be a layered freemium model.[13] The free browser acts as a funnel, introducing a wide audience to the Perplexity ecosystem. Revenue is expected to be generated through premium subscriptions like Perplexity Pro and Max, which offer access to more advanced AI models and features, as well as enterprise solutions.[13] Furthermore, the company is reportedly launching a "Comet Plus" add-on for a monthly fee and exploring a novel advertising model that uses sponsored, AI-generated follow-up questions instead of traditional banner ads.[2][14]

Despite the ambitious vision and the buzz surrounding its release, which reportedly saw millions sign up for the waitlist, Comet faces a landscape fraught with challenges.[15][3] Early user reviews have been polarized; while many praise its innovative features and potential to revolutionize productivity, others have pointed to technical issues, high resource consumption, and inconsistent performance from its advanced agentic capabilities.[16] Beyond technical hurdles, Perplexity must earn user trust, particularly concerning data privacy and the autonomous actions its AI can take.[8][17] The company states that personal browsing data remains local and is not used for training its AI models.[6][8] However, the most significant threat comes from the legal front. Perplexity is currently embroiled in high-profile lawsuits with major publishers, including News Corp and The New York Times, who accuse the company of unauthorized content replication.[11] These legal battles raise fundamental questions about the ethics and legality of how Perplexity's AI sources its information, potentially undermining the trust it needs to build with a mainstream audience.

The broad, free release of Perplexity's Comet is more than the launch of a new application; it is a clear declaration of intent to forge a new paradigm for interacting with the internet. By prioritizing conversational AI and task automation, Perplexity is betting that users will embrace a shift from passively searching for information to actively delegating tasks to an intelligent agent.[4][18] This move has the potential to reshape user expectations and force competitors to accelerate their own AI integrations. The journey ahead is uncertain, and Comet's ultimate success will depend on its ability to deliver a reliable and trustworthy user experience while navigating the complex technical, ethical, and legal challenges that lie ahead.[11][16] For now, it stands as one of the boldest attempts to build a browser truly designed for the age of AI.