Nvidia-backed Perplexity AI, the startup challenging Google with its AI-powered search engine, is in discussions with mobile device makers to pre-install its new Comet browser on smartphones, CEO Aravind Srinivas told Reuters on Friday.

The move could significantly boost Perplexity's reach by capitalising on browser "stickiness", where users tend to stick with browser apps that are pre-installed or set as default on their devices, potentially driving habitual use of the company's AI tools. "It's not easy to convince mobile OEMs to change the default browser to Comet from Chrome," Srinivas said, referring to original equipment manufacturers and highlighting the challenge of user inertia on mobile platforms.

Comet, currently in beta and available only on desktops, integrates Perplexity's AI directly into web browsing, allowing users to ask questions about personal data like emails, calendars, or browsing history, and even perform tasks such as scheduling meetings or summarising webpages.

Perplexity aims to target "tens to hundreds of millions" of users next year after stabilising the desktop version for a few hundred thousand initial testers, Srinivas said.

Its efforts reflect a broader industry shift toward browsers with agentic AI capabilities, ones that need minimal human intervention to make decisions and achieve specific tasks.