Perplexity Launches New AI Shopping Assistant: Perplexity Shopping
Perplexity / Perplexity Shopping
Perplexity has introduced Perplexity Shopping, a new e-commerce feature currently available to U.S.-based Perplexity Pro subscribers. This feature enables users to purchase products directly through the platform.
With Perplexity Shopping, users can ask shopping-related questions and receive responses featuring product cards that highlight relevant items in a simple, visual format. Purchases are streamlined via the "Buy With Pro" button, offering one-click checkout powered by integrations like Shopify. Subscribers also benefit from free shipping. For products not supported by "Buy With Pro,” users are redirected to the merchant's website to complete their purchase.
The platform also features Snap To Shop, a visual search tool that allows users to upload or take photos of items to quickly find related products.
In addition to these features, Perplexity also launched the Perplexity Merchant Program, a free initiative for retailers. Participating retailers gain the following benefits:
Increased Recommendation Opportunities: A higher chance of being featured as a recommended product.
Payment Integrations: Seamless inclusion in the Buy With Pro experience.
API Access: Tools to build custom Perplexity-powered search experiences.
Custom Dashboard: Insights into search and shopping trends to optimize product offerings.
Why It Matters: Perplexity is entering the rapidly evolving AI-powered shopping space. For instance, Amazon’s AI assistant, Rufus, reportedly helped millions of users find items during Prime Day, while Google has enhanced Google Shopping with AI-driven features. OpenAI hasn’t launched a shopping-specific feature yet, but with the recent debut of SearchGPT, it seems poised to formally enter the shopping space in the future.
Perplexity Shopping sets itself apart by simplifying product discovery—whether through descriptions or photos—eliminating the need to sift through endless search results.
While Perplexity doesn’t currently profit from facilitating transactions, this may change in the future, creating a potential revenue stream for the platform, which recently introduced ads.
Online shopping is evolving rapidly, driven by creators, AR/VR, and AI. Which platform will be the first to integrate them all successfully?
