“Where knowledge begins.” This is the motto of Perplexity AI, the new search engine that is currently making buzz. Perplexity sits between Google, ChatGPT and Wikipedia. It is available online, in French, through iOS and Android applications, but also under MacOS and Windows. And offered in free or paid Pro version. At first glance, the platform marks its difference. And its relevance could reshuffle the cards for our online research and that of all students in middle school, high school and university. What is there to be perplexed about? 20 Minutes questioned him.
Extensive and sourced answers
Start by asking Perplexity what makes it different from Google… “What’s the difference between Perplexity and Google?” “, we write in the input field at the bottom of the screen on www.perplexity.ai. Immediate response (which we summarize): “Perplexity AI: enables dynamic interaction where users can ask follow-up questions and explore topics in depth (…). Google: The interaction is generally one-way, where the user asks a question and receives a list of results.
This is a real point that distinguishes the two platforms. The first provides detailed, structured answers, written in clear and fluid language. The second indexes sites, while allowing you to refine your searches using successive queries. It is actually quite fascinating to see how easily the response provided by Perplexity is developed, argued… and even sourced!
Original information accessible
This is also the first thing that appears with each request, even before the response: the platform founded in 2022 by Aravind Srinivas, a 30-year-old Indian-American engineer, indicates where it draws the information it gives us. book after having compiled, tweaked and summarized them. What we call curation. And you can click on a link to discover the original information. Enough to be able to cite your sources in a document that you must prepare. Which does not prevent Perplexity from having already created controversy with Forbes last June.
Arguing that Perplexity had “stolen” texts from it, the American business magazine demanded that the articles be withdrawn, while demanding reimbursement of advertising revenue generated through this “violation” of copyright. Atmosphere.
Texts, photos, videos to expand your research
What remains for everyone is an in-depth and precise research tool, which expands its answers with perfectly editorialized pages… already ready to copy/paste for an assignment… These thus offer links to the sources, but also photos and videos (without prioritizing them), as well as additional questions that you can ask to find out more.
By questioning Perplexity, for example, on the main dates of European construction (which appears in the History program in third grade), the resources are incredible, offering in an instant access to a wealth of information on the Treaties of Rome, the Common Agricultural Policy …And each click allows you to explore your subject in more depth. But by opening Pandora’s box, we can also quickly get lost in it…
So, is it easy to cheat with Perplexity AI? If asked about this topic, the engine defends itself, arguing that it is “legitimate” and that its use and that of “any other tool to cheat in progress is unethical”. We can indeed, and above all, choose to use it as a learning tool and take care to cross-reference the sources it cites, AI being still far from being infallible…
An educational approach
As we noted during our tests, the new search engine can also translate texts, write emails, letters, offer an educational tour on the D-Day beaches if you are a teacher (or in Venice if you are a teacher). ‘we’re in love)! He is inexhaustible when asked to write a text of 5,000 characters on the exile of Victor Hugo; very comfortable solving an equation; essay to summarize the book Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury; or even at the cutting edge of information to explain to us the latest events that have taken place in Syria.
And all this for free, but also in an extremely educational way. It is even possible to organize themed shared offices (called Spaces) to cross-reference research with others as part of collaborative work…
AI whose prices will rise
To ask Perplexity to analyze a text, generate images or to submit a document to analyze and interact with the search engine by voice, you have to put your hand in your wallet: 22 euros per month ( or 229 euros per year). It’s expensive. And everything suggests that the prices of the main players in this still nascent market will increase significantly in the coming years, all while requiring ever more resources. As for comparing prices with other AIs, just ask Perplexity!
