Perplexity AI is working with smartphone makers, including Motorola, to preinstall its Comet browser with built-in AI assistant features on Android and iOS devices.
Quick Summary (TLDR)
- Perplexity, backed by Nvidia and investors like Jeff Bezos and Eric Schmidt, is negotiating preinstall deals for its AI-powered Comet browser.
- The aim is to overcome default browser stickiness as Chrome and Safari hold nearly 94% of mobile market share.
- Comet’s agentic capabilities include interacting with emails, calendars, and even scheduling tasks via voice.
- This mobile browser push highlights a rising trend toward task-oriented, AI-enabled web agents from multiple tech players.
Curious to see an AI browser preinstalled on your next phone? Perplexity is on a mission to make that reality happen. Its new Comet browser isn’t just another browser, it’s a digital assistant built to think and act, and it may soon ship with your new device.
Why Preinstallation Matters
Getting your app preloaded on a device isn’t just convenience, it’s a strategic advantage in digital distribution. Users rarely change their default browser. Chrome alone commands about 70%, while Safari and Samsung’s browsers make up around 24% of the mobile market.
Aravind Srinivas, Perplexity’s CEO, calls this default stickiness a major barrier. He admits “it’s not easy to convince mobile OEMs to change the default browser to Comet from Chrome.”
Comet: More Than Just a Browser
Comet isn’t a typical browser. Built on Chromium for desktop, and soon mobile, it includes:
- A sidebar “agent” that can summarize web pages, parse emails, plan schedules.
- Voice-enabled interaction to ask questions or delegate tasks.
- Integration into personal data like calendars and email to automate routines.
In early previews, Comet is invite-only, targeting Perplexity’s top subscribers before scaling to hundreds of thousands of testers, and aiming for tens to hundreds of millions of users next year.
A Broader Trend in Agentic AI
Perplexity is not alone. The shift to agentic AI browsers is in full swing:
- OpenAI has launched its “ChatGPT agent,” which can autonomously complete tasks like booking travel or building presentations within a virtual browsing environment.
- Google is betting on merging ChromeOS with Android and embedding AI modes within Search.
What’s clear is that browsers are no longer passive gateways to the web, they’re becoming smart assistants.
Strategic Partnerships in Motion
Perplexity has already struck a deal with Motorola to preinstall the Perplexity assistant, and likely to bring Comet onto Motorola’s AI-focused devices. Similar talks are reportedly underway with Samsung and Apple.
This push is reminiscent of how Google paid billions to stay as Safari’s default on iPhones, underlining how critical these partnerships are in controlling browser settings.
Challenges and Roadblocks
Still, turning Comet into a default isn’t a given:
- Strong deals currently favor Chrome on Android, backed by Google’s deep relationships.
- Apple’s WebKit and Safari rules complicate direct competition on iOS.
- Perplexity must satisfy OEMs on performance, privacy, and stability before locking in deals.
What This Means for Users and Competition
If Comet becomes widely preinstalled, users could enjoy:
- A browser that manages tasks, not just displays webpages.
- Voice and email/calendar integration for hands-free scheduling and summarization.
- A step toward a new agentic web model where browsing is interactive and proactive.
For the broader industry, the browser wars are evolving: access, data, and default settings, long controlled by Chrome and Safari, are now up for grabs in the AI age.
TechKV’s Takeaway
I see Comet’s preinstall push as a smart, necessary gamble. If AI browsers become part of the default experience, user behavior could shift dramatically. I’m rooting for Perplexity to succeed, agentic browsers could make our phones feel truly personalized. Let’s watch this one carefully, it could change how we interact online.
