Perplexity has officially launched Comet, its new AI-powered browser, to all users globally. The company confirmed that the browser can now be downloaded for free at perplexity.ai/comet, opening access to what was previously limited to its premium Max users.

The AI search startup first introduced Comet in July for users on its $200-per-month Max plan, after initial testing with a small group of Windows users in June. CEO Aravind Srinivas said at the time that Perplexity’s goal was to reach “tens to hundreds of millions” of users in 2026.

Now, the company says Comet is free for all users. In a blog post, Perplexity explained that Comet comes with an AI assistant built directly into the browser, enabling users to perform tasks and find information while browsing.

What the Comet Assistant does

According to the company, the Comet Assistant “browses the internet with you,” meaning it can respond to questions, summarize pages, or perform actions based on user prompts while exploring the web. The Comet Assistant can answer users’ questions and perform “agentic” tasks.

Perplexity says, “Every new tab has a new Comet Assistant there to answer any question or take any action” on users’ behalf.

Comet is currently available only on desktop. The company plans to expand the AI browser to mobile users, with a personal AI designed specifically for smartphones. That could place it in the same space as mobile assistants like Google Gemini, Apple’s Siri, and ChatGPT.

Competing with Chrome, Safari, and Edge

Perplexity is stepping directly into a market dominated by Google Chrome, Safari, and Microsoft Edge. Each of these browsers has recently expanded its AI integrations, with Google adding Gemini features into Chrome for AI Pro subscribers.

Reports suggest that Perplexity is already in talks with Samsung to preinstall the Comet browser on Galaxy devices expected to launch next year. If those talks lead to a deal, it would make Comet a default browser on millions of Android phones, putting it in direct competition with Google Search and Gemini, both of which are integrated into Samsung’s ecosystem.

Apple is also said to be considering Perplexity as an alternative to Google Search, though the company still uses Siri for voice commands.

These potential partnerships suggest that Perplexity is betting heavily on hardware integrations to gain users, especially as it tries to position itself as a credible AI alternative to Google and OpenAI. Still, the company faces a tough road in challenging Google Chrome, which holds the largest share of the browser market. Chrome has 72%, Safari has 14%, and Microsoft Edge has 5%, according to data from Statcounter. 

Perplexity’s move to make Comet free could give it an early advantage in user adoption. Earlier, the startup made an unsolicited $34.5 billion offer to acquire Google Chrome following its antitrust case. However, Google is expected to keep Chrome, following a court ruling in favor of the company.

Perplexity could also have OpenAI to contend with. The company has reportedly been exploring the idea of launching its own browser to bring ChatGPT functionality into a native browsing experience.

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