Time to Get of Rid of Google (Finally!)

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The one thing I was expecting from AI wasn’t ChatGPT, nor a co-pilot to help me to code, nor a Photoshop that turns my writing into images. What I was expecting from AI was a search engine capable of providing me with straight answers and relevant sources. I was fed up with Google (or Ecosia, the search engine I actually use), and with their nonsense search results, more and more distant from what I need to find.

I was tired of:

• Articles with lengthy intros before I could reach the answer,
• Forum discussions that didn’t provide the solution I was looking for,
• Unrelated topics (ex: searching for Egypt’s politics, finding vacations in Sharm El Sheik),
• Limited time-span, with results covering only the current year or even the last few days, leading to “recentism”,
• And last but not least, with information bubbles, created by previous searches of mine, but also of people with similar profiles to me, or influenced by the region I was searching from.

If you feel this pain, you can either jump directly to “The Solution” paragraph, or delve more into some hilarious examples of how Google/Ecosia drove me mad.

The drama of searching “How to” content

All of these were enough to sod off Google and co. If that wasn’t enough, the frustration mounting when I was searching something urgently was unbearable. Do you know how it is searching for something simple as “How to create switch the orientation of a table in Google Sheet/Excel”?

You search this term, and the first article starts with a lengthy introduction, such as:

“How many times you realized your table was taking too much space horizontally, that you think the best idea is to rearrange the data vertically?”

Yeah, many times, but can you please tell me how to do it?

“There can be various reason to swap the orientation of a table…”

I agree with that, and I have a reason…

“Before proceeding with this operation, you may want to ask yourself the following questions…”

I’ve already asked myself the following questions! Just give me the answer!

“Another good practice is to copy your content and test this solution on another spreadsheet. This is to ensure you are satisfied with the final result and that changing orientation is the best fit for you.”

CAN YOU JUST TELL ME HOW TO SWAP THE ORIENTATION OF A TABLE??? MY GOODNESS!!!

The schizophrenia of searching for historical content

Google can drive you into believing you imagine things. Have you ever heard a song in a show that strikes you? You want to retrieve it, you even remember some lines, but for Google, such content never existed.

Me: “Song heard in Twin Peaks The Return — episode 5, when Shelly’s daughter is high and in love with her boyfriend”

Google: “Twin Peaks The Return is the 3rd season of the Twin Peaks franchise, released in 2017…”, “How David Lynch chose the songs in The Return”, “Twin Peaks soundtrack, Julee Cruise, Chromatics”

Me: Fuck you! You are right! I just imagine things! You’re always right! MOTHERFUCKER!!!!

The solution

The solution to this increasing search engine nonsense is called Perplexity.ai!

I imagine that I wasn’t the only one “perplexed” by the deteriorating performance of every classic search engine out there. The internet has become an impossible foggy place, with SEO creating an impenetrable wall of smoke that we cannot see through anymore.

What is Perplexity.ai

Perplexity.ai is a revolutionary search engine designed to deliver straight answers and relevant sources, addressing the frustrations many users face with traditional search engines like Google or Ecosia. It utilizes advanced AI technology to cut through the SEO smoke and provide concise, accurate information quickly and efficiently. This innovative approach saves users precious time and reduces the hassle of sifting through irrelevant content, making it a game-changer in the realm of online search.

How to Use Perplexity.ai

Using Perplexity.ai is straightforward and user-friendly. Simply enter your query into the search bar, and the AI-powered engine will instantly process your request, going straight to the point!

Yeah, you can write as if you were asking a dude to recall the name of that catchy song! And what answer did I get? A straight, simple one, like a normal dude would give you!

No more running in circles, finally!

The interface is designed to minimize distractions, focusing on delivering the information you need without unnecessary fluff or unrelated results. Whether you’re looking for quick facts, detailed explanations, or comprehensive resources, Perplexity.ai streamlines the search process, making it easy and efficient.

How SEO has been ruining your user experience

SEO has been criticized for ruining the search engine experience of users in several ways:

1. Content Quality and Authenticity: With every business obsessed with SEO ranking, they stuff their sites with SEO-driven content. This approach too often prioritizes search engine rankings over user experience, resulting in poorly written and bland posts that feel artificial.
2. Overemphasis on Traffic: SEO can create an environment where websites focus more on generating traffic than on providing valuable content. This can result in a proliferation of low-quality content and a negative user experience.
3. Algorithmic Manipulation: SEO professionals (but I’d like to call them something else…) often use tactics like buying links, which can manipulate search engine rankings. This can lead to a skewed search results page that favors sites that have engaged in these practices over those that provide better content.
4. Lack of Diversity in Indexing Algorithms: The dominance of Google’s algorithm means that websites are often optimized for a single algorithm, leading to a homogenization of content and a lack of diversity in search results. This can make it difficult for users to find high-quality content that meets their needs.

How Perplexity.ai Complements the Use of ChatGPT!

While ChatGPT excels in generating detailed, conversational responses, Perplexity.ai complements it by providing succinct, direct answers to specific queries. When combined, these tools offer an unstoppable duo for information retrieval and problem-solving. Perplexity.ai handles straightforward queries with precision, while ChatGPT can be used for more complex, nuanced discussions and explorations of topics. Together, they enhance your experience, ensuring that all informational needs are met efficiently and effectively.

Imagine the joy of students preparing their research 10x faster than they used until today!

Free to Use (Though Pro Version Exists)

Perplexity.ai offers its groundbreaking search capabilities for free, making it accessible to a wide audience. 

The Pro version includes additional benefits such as faster response times, more detailed analytics, and priority support. This tiered approach ensures that all users, from casual browsers to professional researchers, can find a plan that suits their needs and budget.

Who Created Perplexity.ai

Perplexity AI was founded in August 2022 by Aravind Srinivas, Denis Yarats, Johnny Ho, and Andy Konwinski. The founders have backgrounds in back-end systems, AI, and machine learning. Yarats, the CTO, was an AI research scientist at Meta, while Srinivas, the CEO, worked at OpenAI as an AI researcher. Ho worked as an engineer at Quora and a quantitative trader on Wall Street, and Konwinski was among the founding team at Databricks.

AI-powered search engine Perplexity AI lands $26M, launches iOS app | TechCrunch Perplexity AI, an AI-powered startup taking on massive rivals like Google, has raised significant venture capital from…techcrunch.com

The team’s collective expertise and vision for a better search experience drove the creation of this innovative tool. The team is dedicated to continually improving Perplexity.ai, ensuring it remains at the forefront of search engine technology.

Who is Investing in Perplexity.ai

Perplexity AI has attracted significant investment from various prominent individuals and organizations. Some of the notable investors include:

1. Daniel Gross: Led the funding round with participation from billionaire Stanley Druckenmiller, Garry Tan (CEO of Y Combinator), and Dylan Field (CEO of Figma).

2. Jeff Bezos: Amazon.com Inc. founder and an earlier investor who joined the funding round. 3. Nvidia Corp.: Earlier investor, with CEO Jensen Huang using the product daily.

4. Bridgewater Associates, Zoom Video Communications Inc., and the Cleveland Cavaliers: Early adopters of Perplexity’s enterprise version.

5. SoftBank Corp. (Japan) and Deutsche Telekom AG (Germany): Signed distribution partnerships to expand the company’s reach beyond the US market.

6. NEA and IVP: Previous investors considering participation in the latest funding round.

7. Sequoia, Bessemer, Kindred, Nvidia, Databricks, Bezos Expeditions, Meta’s chief AI scientist Yann LeCun, Naval Ravikant, Susan Wojcicki, Elad Gil, Nat Friedman, and Clément Delangue from Hugging Face: Other notable investors listed on PitchBook.

These investors demonstrate the growing enthusiasm for Perplexity’s search engine and its potential to revolutionize how we find information on the web.

Bloomberg Edit descriptionwww.bloomberg.com

EXCLUSIVE: Perplexity is raising $250M+ at a $2.5-$3B valuation for its AI search platform, sources… Perplexity, the AI search engine startup, is a hot property at the moment. TechCrunch has learned that the company is…techcrunch.com

For you to see

What are you waiting for? Throw Google in the trash bin and go directly to Perplexity.ai!

You can even check this video, if you still don’t believe me…