New AI Helper for Android: Perplexity assistant challenges Gemini

A new AI helper is now available for Android users, offering practical real-life uses. The Perplexity Assistant is an AI that can call for an Uber ride or manage tasks right from your smartphone.

We’ve heard about AI models called LAMs (large action models) that can do things on your devices. Google’s Gemini can do some of this, like opening apps and performing actions, but it has its boundaries.

Now, Perplexity Assistant is here for everyone with an Android device, available on the Google Play Store. It works like any other AI helper; just press and hold the power button and Perplexity pops up at the bottom of your screen. You’ll need to switch it from Gemini to use it.

What stands out with Perplexity Assistant is its ability to work with apps outside the usual system. After a few tries, I managed to use it to book an Uber ride to the airport – something I couldn’t do with other assistants. It can also play tunes on Spotify or YouTube, though that’s not the highlight. Booking a dinner spot with OpenTable? That’s pretty cool.

When compared to Gemini, Perplexity Assistant seems to provide more detailed information. For instance, asking it to describe what’s in front of me made it open the camera to scan my surroundings. It gave me a thorough description of my coffee cup, similar to what Gemini Live might do. However, it did take a few attempts for the assistant to get that I wanted it to analyze what the camera was seeing. The app isn’t perfect yet, but it’s promising.

Gemini can do similar tasks, but it’s a bit more hands-on for now. Perplexity Assistant is free to download from the Google Play Store, and you get all these features with the basic version. If you want more, there’s a Pro version for $19.99 a month.