FIRST OF ALL - INTRODUCTION

Most of us reading this were born before Google search engine became the global number one. And we had barely just gained access to use mobile phones and internet when it happened. This means that most of our lives, every time we’ve had a question, Google has always been the first place we run to. Who is the president of Nigeria? What’s the capital of Uzbekistan? Top 5 thrift stores in Lagos? Just head to Google, type it in, and get your answer (albeit wrapped in hundreds of blue links).

That used to be the standard. You click, scroll, compare, and cross-check until you finally find something useful (if you don’t get tired first). Then came the conversational AI era. Now, you can just throw your question at a chatbot like ChatGPT and get a clean, structured response in seconds.

But that evolution came with its own trade-offs. These models, powerful as they are, were trained on static data. So if GPT-4 (ChatGPT) or Llama 4 (Meta AI) was last trained in 2023, it has no idea what happened in 2024. Ask it for the best thrift stores today, and it might suggest shops that shut down a year ago. Below, you will find a screenshot of me asking Meta AI who the last winner of the FA Community Shield is. It tells me — with receipts — that Manchester City is the last winner. However, just a couple of weeks ago, Crystal Palace won the Community Shield, but Meta doesn’t know this because it’s built on Llama 4 which was last updated in April, 2025.

This gap between static conversational AIs and the ever-evolving web was exactly what one man sought to fix. Aravind Srinivas had interned at Google DeepMind, where he got a front-row seat to how the world’s most powerful search engine works. Later, he worked full-time at OpenAI, learning how conversational AI could simplify access to information.

What happens when someone who understands both worlds— search engines and large language models— tries to build a better tool?

You get Perplexity AI.

Perplexity is a new kind of answer engine. It responds like ChatGPT, but behind the scenes, it’s scanning the internet in real-time. Instead of giving you outdated guesses or dumping a blizzard of blue links on you, it does the hard research—searching, sorting, verifying. Gbam! It responds with up-to-date answers tailored for your specific query.

While other AI models like ChatGPT and Gemini now offer real-time search and citation capabilities, Perplexity AI was the first to pioneer this innovation in answer engines. And it all started in 2022 when the CEO of Perplexity, Aravind, experienced a deeply personal frustration. He was searching for health insurance and instead of receiving direct, actionable answers, he was confronted with endless lists of blue links that required manual sifting through multiple websites (sound familiar?). This moment of frustration sparked the vision that would eventually become Perplexity AI.

KINI ANFAANI? WHAT DOES IT DO?

So, what exactly can Perplexity do? What makes it so special that we're dedicating an entire week to spotlighting it?

As we already established, Perplexity is a real-time, web-connected answer engine. That means when you ask it a question, it doesn’t just pull from a limited, outdated dataset like many other AI tools. It goes out into the actual web, scans through live pages, pulls up-to-date information, and then delivers that info to you in clear, conversational language.

Here are some of its most impressive features:

1. Real-time Web Access
   Perplexity doesn’t just rely on what it was trained on. It actively searches the internet as you ask. So whether you're looking for the thorough answer to your assignment, a breaking news update, or current market trends, it’s got your back.

2. Citations & Sources
   One thing people often struggle with when using AI tools is not knowing where the answers are coming from. Perplexity solves that. It shows citations for every response it gives, so you can see the exact websites it pulled info from.

   

   Citations from Kini AI’s research paper on Perplexity AI

   

   Web version of Perplexity’s citations

3. Deep Research Mode

   Students, see sharp update for here! Perplexity has a Deep Research mode that allows you to go deeper into a topic. When activated, it pulls more comprehensive insights, giving you a mini-report on your query. Before writing this article, we used this feature to do our own findings and it delivered a 19-page paper! This one no be bobo, see the paper here.

4. File Uploads & Document Queries
   You can upload documents, voice notes, images, etc. and ask questions about them. Perplexity will read through the doc and provide contextual answers, perfect for students, analysts, or legal teams. In the screenshot below, we uploaded the promotional poster containing the details of an essay competition. It analyzed the image, and produced our desired outcome.

5. Model Router
   Perplexity isn’t locked into just one AI model. With its Model Router, you can choose whether your query should be answered using GPT-4, Claude, or other top models, depending on what you want. This gives you richer responses, more flexibility, and access to diverse perspectives.

   When you activate the “Best” option, Perplexity chooses the most suitable model for your query. Otherwise, you get to decide.

   Note: This feature is available only to Pro users. Sign up for our workshop and get free access to a Perplexity Pro subscription!

6. Threaded Conversations
   You can have continuous, structured chats with Perplexity. It keeps the context of your previous questions, which makes it great for ongoing research, not just one-off queries.

7. Export & Share Features

   You can easily share your conversations with others via link (great for collaboration or transparency) and export your results as markdown or text. This is perfect for adding to reports, blog posts, or documents without having to copy and clean up manually.

8. Labs Feature
   This is one of Perplexity’s most exciting and underrated capabilities. The Labs section lets you run advanced tasks like multi-step research, writing assistance, data analysis, and even custom workflows. It’s perfect for people working on more technical or layered tasks who need the AI to go beyond a single query. You can instruct it to compare sources, summarize lengthy documents, or create detailed reports.

You’re probably wondering: “If Perplexity is this good, how come I’ve never heard of it?” Well, Perplexity is still a startup. They’re not yet as legendary or loud as Google and OpenAI. However, they’re growing fast. In fact, their strategy so far has been partnerships over publicity. Instead of splashing billboards everywhere, they’ve been working with institutions, communities, and creators to get their tool into the hands of people who will actually use it.

We at Kini AI are proud to be one of their official partners

And in keeping faith with our partnership, we are pleased to announce that we're hosting a free hands-on workshop on September 30th to teach you how to use Perplexity like a pro. From mastering its Deep Research Mode and Labs feature to setting up personalized research threads, you’ll learn all the tips that’ll save you hours of research time and help you produce smarter work.

P.S - Attendees get free access to Perplexity Pro. There are limited slots available, so click on this link right now to register.

WHO THIS THING HELP? WHO SHOULD ACTUALLY USE IT?

1. Students & Researchers
   Especially final year students! Perplexity is your best friend. Instead of bouncing between tabs, skimming through long PDFs, or digging through outdated forums to find a reliable source, Perplexity should be your go-to tool. It will help you with real-time research, give citations, and save you hours.

2. Writers & Content Creators
   If you need accurate, timely information to back your writing, Perplexity helps you go beyond surface-level Google searches. It offers summaries, references, and follow-up questions that help you dive deeper into any topic.

3. Founders & Operators
   If you’re building something, or scaling, or trying to make a business case, Perplexity can help you benchmark competitors, understand market trends, or even gather strategic insight; all in one prompt.

4. Professionals in any field
   No matter the field you’re in or are trying to go into, if you need data, analysis, or expert summaries, Perplexity gives you solid starting points without all the clutter.

5. Curious minds

   Even if you’re not doing formal research, Perplexity is great for learning new things with context, depth, and clarity. You can ask it why, not just what, and get answers that actually make sense.

   If you fall into any of these categories, start exploring Perplexity on your:

   • Web Browser

   • Android device

   • iOS device

PROs and CONs

Why You Should Consider Perplexity

1. Real-Time Web Access
   Unlike many AI tools trained on static data, Perplexity browses the internet live so you're getting fresh, up-to-date info.

2. Citations Built-In
   Every answer comes with sources, so you can trace where the information came from. No more guessing or wondering, “Is this even true?”

3. Model Router
   You can choose what model you want Perplexity to use: GPT-4, Claude, Mistral, etc. It’s like choosing the best brain for the job.

4. Deep Research with Follow-Ups
   Perplexity isn’t just good at giving answers, it’s good at asking the next best question. It recommends related queries that help you dig deeper.

5. Labs Feature
   This is where the tool gets more experimental and powerful. Labs lets you explore Perplexity’s full potential, like analyzing PDFs, building custom agents, or summarizing long docs.

6. Share & Export Options
   You can share your conversations or export them in multiple formats (Markdown, PDF, plain text). Useful for collaboration or documentation.

7. Speed & Simplicity
   It’s fast, intuitive, and clean, unlike the chaos of 15 tabs on your browser when you're using Google.

WAIT, Just Before You Jump In… (Shine Ya Eyes)

1. Not 100% Hallucination-Free

   Like all AI tools, Perplexity can still make errors or misinterpret information. The citations help, but you still need to verify.

2. Limited Without Pro Subscription
   The free version is useful, but you won’t get access to multimodal model choices, Labs, or advanced capabilities without upgrading.

3. Sometimes Over-Simplified
   In trying to summarize or simplify, Perplexity may skip useful nuances, especially with complex or controversial topics.

4. No Personalization (Yet)
   Unlike some AI tools, Perplexity doesn’t yet learn your style, tone, or preferences over time.

Koko of The Matter - Bottom Line

If you Google a lot, then Perplexity is built for you.…and you should be Perplexity-ing a lot from now!

And if you want to get the best of it, join our free Perplexity workshop on September 30th — and get free access to a Perplexity Pro subscription. Limited slots available.