Perplexity brings ads to its platform

Nov 14, 2024

Perplexity introduces ads in its AI search tool to boost revenue amid plagiarism allegations.

: Perplexity is adding 'sponsored follow-up questions' ads in the U.S. to its AI-powered search engine for diversification of income. Partnering with brands like Indeed and Whole Foods, the ads aim at maintaining the quality and objectivity of AI answers without disclosing users' information. The move contrasts OpenAI’s ad-free model, and Perplexity faces challenges including plagiarism accusations. Efforts continue as it seeks $500 million funding at a $9 billion valuation.

Perplexity, an AI search engine, will start displaying ads in the form of 'sponsored follow-up questions' on its U.S. platform. The ads, partnered with brands like Indeed and Universal McCann, will help generate revenue due to inadequate income from subscriptions alone, yet maintain AI-generated content and user privacy.

This advertising initiative is part of Perplexity's strategy to sell ad products as a premium choice over Google's, targeting educated, high-income groups. Despite this, there are concerns about the scale and effectiveness of ads in AI-generated content, a dilemma encountered briefly by Microsoft's Bing.

Simultaneously, Perplexity faces plagiarism accusations, with lawsuits from News Corp’s Dow Jones and The NY Post. The company, handling 100 million search queries weekly, is accused of content imitation but seeks $500 million in funding while expanding its premium service for better user features.