AI answer engine Perplexity adds direct shopping capabilities with one-click checkout and AI product recommendations. The company aims to streamline the online shopping experience through its search interface.
The shopping feature connects to e-commerce platforms, including Shopify. Perplexity automatically aggregates and analyzes product reviews from these sources based on the user's query.
A key feature, "Buy with Pro," offers US subscribers a one-click checkout system. After adding their payment and shipping information, users can complete purchases directly through Perplexity. The company includes free shipping on all "Buy with Pro" orders.
For products not supported by Buy with Pro or Shopify, Perplexity sends users to the merchant's website to complete their purchase normally.
The platform also introduces Snap to Shop, which allows users to search for products by uploading photos, even without knowing the product name. The system then provides matching purchase options.
Video: Perplexity
Perplexity says that the product cards that appear in search results are not sponsored and are therefore "unbiased recommendations." The service is launching in the U.S., and the company plans to expand to other countries.
Working with retailers
Perplexity is also creating a merchant program. Large sellers can directly integrate their product data, increasing their chances of appearing as "recommended products" and having the option to be included in the one-click checkout system.
In addition, the company offers merchants free API access to its search capabilities and analytics that show search and shopping trends. This merchant program is separate from Perplexity's recently launched sponsored question advertising and is designed to scale the shopping feature.
Questions about hallucination rates remain unanswered
One drawback to Perplexity's AI responses is output errors known as "hallucinations" or "bullshit," which occur when language models summarize and paraphrase content.
While these errors are known to exist in Perplexity's system, as they do in any LLM service, the company hasn't revealed how often they occur, and it has not responded to multiple inquiries about whether it tracks these errors or plans to publish error statistics.
This means that even when searching for products, there's no guarantee Perplexity will find the most relevant items or accurately display their features. Users should double-check prices and product details on the original retailer websites before completing purchases through Perplexity's platform.
