From tabs to thinking: Meet the AI-first browser that might replace your workflow tools

What is the AI news?

Perplexity, the AI search engine that’s been giving Google some serious competition, just launched something ambitious: Comet, the world’s first AI-first web browser. Unlike Chrome or Edge with some AI sprinkled in, Comet is built from the ground up around artificial intelligence. Think less tab-clicking, more saying “Summarise all my research, send it to my team, and book a meeting” - and it just happens.

Why it matters

Let’s be real: tech writing means juggling tabs, research, notes, drafts, and endless copy-pasting between tools. Comet aims to eliminate that friction. It watches your screen in real time and can summarise pages, manage emails, help schedule meetings, and even interpret charts or videos - without switching apps. This could seriously change how we gather information and manage our workflows.

How it helps you

Comet’s real-time AI assistant can turn long articles into concise summaries with one click - or even a voice command. Research-heavy documentation? Ask Comet to group your tabs and give you a high-level overview. Drafting a guide? It can pull references from your open tabs and suggest relevant content. You can also ask context-aware questions right on the page you’re viewing, which makes analysing complex documentation much smoother.

A bonus: it runs on Chromium, so all your usual browser extensions still work.

What’s the catch?

While the features are promising, there are a few caveats. It’s still early days - hallucinations (wrong AI outputs) pop up during complex tasks like form filling. Full functionality also requires deep access to your accounts, which raises privacy flags. And then there’s the price tag: $200/month, currently available only to Perplexity Max subscribers.

Bottom line:

Comet is more than hype - it’s a glimpse at how AI might truly integrate into the browser. But unless you’re an early adopter with specific needs (and budget), it’s smart to wait. Still, technical writers should keep an eye on this space. A browser that helps think instead of just show could be the next big productivity leap.

Quick Tips:

• Use Comet’s summariser for dense research docs
• Let it organise your tab chaos automatically
• Combine it with your usual browser for focused tasks
• Don’t give blanket permissions - start small
• Join the waitlist at comet.perplexity.ai if you're curious