Mozilla’s Firefox adds Perplexity’s AI answer engine as a new search option

While AI companies, startups and others are coming out with their own web browsers that embed AI services deeper into the web surfing experience, Mozilla’s Firefox is instead allowing its customers to swap out their default search engine for an AI-powered search option in the browser they already use. The company on Tuesday… announced It’s bringing Perplexity, an AI answer engine, to Firefox to help customers decide whether they want to use AI to search the web and find new information.

Mozilla had first announced It was testing the integration, but the option was only available in select markets, including the US, UK, and Germany. It was not yet determined whether Perplexity would be permanently added to Firefox’s list of web search providers, along with other providers like Google, Bing, DuckDuckGo.

Now, the company says positive user feedback has inspired it to make Perplexity available to its global users on desktop. It will be coming to mobile devices in the coming months.

Once enabled, Perplexity provides a conversational search experience where answers appear with citations, as opposed to a list of web links, like Google’s traditional search. The option will appear in the integrated search button in the address bar, letting you quickly switch to searching with Perplexity as needed. Users can also configure their default search provider in Firefox’s settings.

Mozilla previously said that if the Perplexity pilot was successful, it would consider adding more AI answer engines or search options to its browser in the future. (This probably started with perplexity because the company says it won’t share or sell users’ personal data.)

Along with the news of the AI ​​search option, Mozilla also noted that it is building its browser profile After months of testing and a gradual rollout it is widely available to all users. this feature lets you switch between For different browser setups, such as work, school or personal use.

Additionally, the company continues to test visual search with Google Lens among people who set Google as their default search provider on desktop.