Perplexity added several powerful features this month that make it worth another look, especially if you handle complex research tasks.
Here’s what stands out:
1. Spaces
This goes far beyond the old collections system. You can now build custom AI assistants specifically for your research needs. Upload files to enhance their knowledge, then share access with your team. This makes Perplexity a serious contender against OpenAI’s custom GPTs.
2. Finance Features
The new finance integration provides instant access to stock charts and company data. I found this particularly useful for quick market research without jumping between different platforms.
3. MacOS Desktop App
The desktop app brings Pro Search capabilities right to your dock. Voice search works surprisingly well for hands-free queries while multitasking. The shortcuts make it fast to pull up, though I wish they’d add global keyboard commands.
4. Reasoning Mode
This kicks in automatically for complex questions, using GPT-4 Omni to break down multi-part problems. While testing, I noticed much more detailed and logical responses compared to standard mode.
5. Combined Internal & Web Search
This is the standout feature. You can now search your uploaded files and the web simultaneously. No more switching between internal docs and browser tabs to piece information together.
The Bottom Line
Perplexity isn’t trying to be everything to everyone. Instead, they’re building specific tools for serious research work. If that’s what you need, these new features make it worth considering, especially compared to [Claude’s current limitations](https://adam.holter.com/claude-vs-chatgpt-part-5-five-key-features-claude-still-lacks/).
Want more AI tool comparisons and analysis? Check out my recent post on [LLM factuality benchmarks](https://adam.holter.com/wildhallucinations-a-fresh-benchmark-for-llm-factuality/).
