Whether you love or hate AI, one thing is for sure: the AI search wars have ignited a new era of innovation. In just the past few months, we've seen Microsoft introduce Bing Generative Search, Google introduce AI Overviews, OpenAI introduce SearchGPT, and now… drumroll please… Perplexity AI has added "," where Pro subscribers ($20/month in the U.S.) can buy products directly from Perplexity's search results. Saved billing and shipping info handles the details, and free shipping sweetens the deal. If the product isn’t supported, you’ll get kicked to the merchant’s website. (Wait. What? Is this like link-based search?)
Perplexity says they’re not taking a cut from sales … yet. Spokesperson Sara Platnick confirmed (“There’s no commercial element”), but it’s hard to ignore where this might be heading.
For non-subscribers, Perplexity has spruced up its search results with AI-generated product cards. Think images, prices, and cherry-picked reviews, all bundled to make you click faster.
They've also added “Snap to Shop,” a Pro-only feature that lets you snap a pic of a product and get instant intel; think Google Lens (but with a subscription fee).
For merchants, Perplexity’s new seller program promises insights into shopping trends and more product recommendations in searches. Translation: pay up and maybe we’ll show your stuff (aka "pay for play"). Ugh!
Just when I was about to give up on Perplexity (SearchGPT is my default search tool this week)... but credit where credit is due. We haven't seen this much innovation in search since Google introduced Universal Search in 2007. Anyone taking bets on what's next?
As always your thoughts and comments are both welcome and encouraged. -s
P.S. I'm interested to know if you've changed your search behaviors or habits in the past six months. Are you using Perplexity or SearchGPT or any of the other AI-powered search tools? Is Google still your default? Are you a DuckDuckGo person? Do you have a bunch of search sites bookmarked and choose the one you think will do the best job for the kind of search you're doing? This was a space that Google absolutely owned. Do they still own it? Just reply to this email.
ABOUT SHELLY PALMER
Shelly Palmer is the Professor of Advanced Media in Residence at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and CEO of The Palmer Group, a consulting practice that helps Fortune 500 companies with technology, media and marketing. Named he covers tech and business for , is a regular commentator on CNN and writes a popular . He's a , and the creator of the popular, free online course, . Follow or visit .
