Perplexity's decision to incorporate ads is in contrast to OpenAI's choice not to include ads in its AI-powered search tool, ChatGPT Search. The company is marketing its ad products as a premium alternative to Google's, targeting educated, high-income consumers. However, concerns have been raised about the scale, reach, and targeting capabilities of ads on Perplexity. The company, which is reportedly raising $500 million in funding at a $9 billion valuation, currently only has one revenue stream: its premium subscription service, Perplexity Pro.
Key takeaways:
- AI-powered search engine Perplexity is starting to experiment with ads on its platform, initially in the U.S., with the ads being formatted as 'sponsored follow-up questions'.
- Perplexity's ad program includes brands such as Indeed, Whole Foods, Universal McCann and PMG, and the company asserts that answers to these sponsored questions will still be generated by its AI, not the brands sponsoring the questions.
- Perplexity has faced accusations of plagiarism from News Corp’s Dow Jones and the NY Post, and other news sites have shown evidence that Perplexity closely replicates their content.
- The company is reportedly in the final stages of raising $500 million in funding at a $9 billion valuation, and currently has only one revenue stream: its premium subscription service, Perplexity Pro.