PayPal and Venmo Offer Free Access to Perplexity's Comet AI Browser and Pro Subscription

PayPal and Venmo are giving out Comet invites and free Perplexity Pro subscriptions | TechCrunch

Invites to Perplexity's new AI-powered web browser, Comet, are one of the web's hottest commodities these days. The new product was made available first to the AI firm's $200-per-month Max subscribers and a small group of invitees. But now there's a new way to jump ahead on the waitlist. On Wednesday, PayPal announced it's giving its customers, including PayPal and Venmo users, early access to Comet as well as a free year's subscription to Perplexity's premium service, Perplexity Pro, normally $200 per year. The browser, launched in July, offers an integrated AI assistant, AI-generated summaries of search results, product comparisons, and other features. While typically a co-marketing relationship isn't news, it's worth paying attention to this deal because of PayPal's ability to position Comet in front of millions of U.S. customers, and later, even more globally. The arrangement is part of a new partnership between PayPal and the AI provider, which benefits both companies in different ways. For PayPal, it has the potential to draw users to its apps with the promise of the Comet invite and free subscription, while also calling attention to its newer subscriptions hub feature, which provides a single destination where users can view and manage their recurring subscriptions. (Alongside this, PayPal is running a promotion that pays out $50 to customers who link and pay for at least three subscriptions through its service.) Meanwhile, Perplexity gains increased exposure at a time when AI agents are battling for attention, and AI-powered browsers are aiming to disrupt a market currently dominated by Chrome. It could also help Perplexity gain more paid subscribers, as users may either forget to cancel or actively decide to stay subscribed when the free year of Perplexity Pro is up. To receive the free 12-month subscription and Comet invite, PayPal and Venmo users will be able to access the offer directly in their respective apps. Users only get one invite per PayPal account, and they can't already be Perplexity Pro customers. "Our partnership with Perplexity gives PayPal and Venmo customers early access to one of the most anticipated AI browsers and dynamic subscriptions," said Diego Scotti, general manager of the Consumer Group at PayPal, in a prepared statement. "It's exciting to deliver offers and tools that our customers request most, meeting their needs and helping them navigate their financial lives with greater simplicity, added convenience, and even more rewards." The offer is valid through the end of 2025 and is only available to U.S. customers at launch, PayPal notes. It will roll out to international markets later in the month.

PayPal and Venmo users can try Perplexity's Comet AI browser free for a year now

The offer includes a one-year subscription to Perplexity Pro. PayPal and Venmo users in the US and other global markets can now receive early access to Perplexity's highly anticipated Comet web browser, PayPal announced today. The offer includes a 12-month free trial of Perplexity Pro, which normally has an annual subscription cost of $200. Launched last month, Comet has been positioned by Perplexity as a more dynamic, intuitive, and agentic alternative to competitors like Chrome and Safari. The browser can also interact directly with your personal email, calendar, notes, or other online assets, provided you grant Perplexity access to view those files. Also: ChatGPT speak is creeping into our everyday language - here's why it matters Comet was initially released to subscribers of Perplexity Max, the company's $200-a-month premium service, and also to a small group of early users who had signed up via a waitlist. PayPal's new offer gives customers the chance to skip the waitlist and experience one year of Comet via Perplexity Pro free of charge. The partnership could enable Perplexity to spread the word about its new browser by putting it in the hands of millions of PayPal and Venmo users across the US and elsewhere. Like most free trials, the idea is that the tool will become so embedded into many users' daily lives that when the one-year period is up, a significant number will opt to pay to continue using Perplexity Pro. Also: OpenAI and Anthropic evaluated each others' models - which ones came out on top "The Comet browser is like a personal shopper and personal assistant all in one, so we're excited that PayPal users will have early access to Comet," Ryan Foutty, Perplexity's VP of business, said in a statement. "In conjunction with Perplexity Pro, we're arming PayPal and Venmo customers with powerful, accurate AI that's useful throughout their daily lives." PayPal bought Venmo in 2013 as part of its $800 million acquisition of Braintree, the latter platform's parent company. Perplexity Pro can now be accessed directly via PayPal's new subscriptions hub, an in-app feature that allows users to track and manage their subscriptions to various apps. These apps are organized into categories like entertainment, music, and news. The hub is currently available to US users and will be launched globally on September 22. Also: No, Grok 2.5 has not been open-sourced. Here's how you can tell PayPal and Venmo users in the US can sign up now for their free 12-month trial of Perplexity Pro through the respective apps. Users in Canada, Australia, France, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Singapore, and Spain can access the free trial here.

PayPal and Venmo users get free year of Perplexity Pro and Comet AI browser

The offer includes a one-year subscription to Perplexity Pro. PayPal and Venmo users in the US and other global markets can now receive early access to Perplexity's highly anticipated Comet web browser, PayPal announced. The offer includes a 12-month free trial of Perplexity Pro, which normally has an annual subscription cost of $200. Launched last month, Comet has been positioned by Perplexity as a more dynamic, intuitive, and agentic alternative to competitors like Chrome and Safari. The browser can also interact directly with your personal email, calendar, notes, or other online assets, provided you grant Perplexity access to view those files. Also: ChatGPT speak is creeping into our everyday language - here's why it matters Comet was initially released to subscribers of Perplexity Max, the company's $200-a-month premium service, and also to a small group of early users who had signed up via a waitlist. PayPal's new offer gives customers the chance to skip the waitlist and experience one year of Comet via Perplexity Pro free of charge. The partnership could enable Perplexity to spread the word about its new browser by putting it in the hands of millions of PayPal and Venmo users across the US and elsewhere. Like most free trials, the idea is that the tool will become so embedded into many users' daily lives that when the one-year period is up, a significant number will opt to pay to continue using Perplexity Pro. Also: OpenAI and Anthropic evaluated each others' models - which ones came out on top "The Comet browser is like a personal shopper and personal assistant all in one, so we're excited that PayPal users will have early access to Comet," Ryan Foutty, Perplexity's VP of business, said in a statement. "In conjunction with Perplexity Pro, we're arming PayPal and Venmo customers with powerful, accurate AI that's useful throughout their daily lives." PayPal bought Venmo in 2013 as part of its $800 million acquisition of Braintree, the latter platform's parent company. Perplexity Pro can now be accessed directly via PayPal's new subscriptions hub, an in-app feature that allows users to track and manage their subscriptions to various apps. These apps are organized into categories like entertainment, music, and news. The hub is currently available to US users and will be launched globally on September 22. Also: No, Grok 2.5 has not been open-sourced. Here's how you can tell PayPal and Venmo users in the US can sign up now for their free 12-month trial of Perplexity Pro through the respective apps. Users in Canada, Australia, France, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Singapore, and Spain can access the free trial here.

PayPal, Venmo Users Can Get Perplexity Pro, Comet Browser Access for Free

Don't miss out on our latest stories. Add PCMag as a preferred source on Google. PayPal and Venmo are giving users a year of Perplexity Pro and access to the Comet AI browser. Perplexity Pro usually costs $20 per month or $200 per year for unlimited searches, advanced AI models, image generation, extended upload limits, exclusive support channels, and more. The Comet AI browser, on the other hand, is a Chromium-based browser packed with AI features. It features an "Assistant" button at the top that you can click to receive AI summaries or ask follow-up questions about any web page you visit. It's also got agentic functions. You can, for example, provide prompts to clear out your Gmail spam folder or add stuff to your Instacart. However, access to the browser is currently limited to users invited by Perplexity or those paying for the $200-per-month Perplexity Max subscription. With Venmo and PayPal's new offer, though, you can unlock access to the browser and also get 12 months of free Perplexity Pro. To claim the offer, users need to link their PayPal or Venmo account with Perplexity. They can do so from the respective apps or from a dedicated page on Perplexity's website. The offer is valid through Dec. 31 for users who have never subscribed to Perplexity Pro before. It can be redeemed only once from a PayPal or Venmo account. If your PayPal account was created before Sept. 1, you get immediate access. Otherwise, you'll have to wait for 30 days. Alongside these perks, PayPal also announced the rollout of its new Subscriptions hub. In the US, customers will be able to track and manage all their recurring payments and see new offers and bundles here. Through Sept. 5, customers who link and pay for three subscriptions within the hub will get $50 cash back.

PayPal, Venmo users to gain early access to Perplexity's Comet AI browser

Sept 3 (Reuters) - PayPal (PYPL.O), opens new tab and Venmo users in the U.S. and some global markets will receive early access to Perplexity's new AI-powered Comet browser through a 12-month trial of the startup's Pro subscription, the digital payments company said on Wednesday. The Nvidia-backed (NVDA.O), opens new tab startup provides artificial intelligence search tools that deliver information summaries to users, looking to take on OpenAI and Google in the AI-powered search industry. The Perplexity Pro subscription is worth $200 a year or $20 a month. It is one of the first offers now available to customers in PayPal's new subscriptions hub, which helps users view and manage recurring subscription payments, the company said. The offer also provides Perplexity access to Paypal's more than 430 million users, as of the second quarter, enabling easy onboarding into a 12‑month Pro trial. The AI startup launched Comet in early July and made it available to a wider set of users last month. The browser integrates Perplexity's AI tools directly into web browsing, allowing users to ask questions about personal data like emails, calendars, or browsing history, and perform tasks such as scheduling meetings or summarizing webpages. Users in the U.S. can sign up for Perplexity Pro directly in the PayPal app starting Wednesday, while global customers in select markets can activate the offer by selecting PayPal at checkout when signing up for Perplexity online. Perplexity is also working on a mobile version of Comet and the company was in talks with smartphone makers to distribute the browser on mobile devices, Perplexity CEO told Reuters in July. Comet is available to Perplexity Max and Pro subscribers, with broader access rolling out and Comet Plus features included for paying tiers. Perplexity first partnered with PayPal in May to enable direct purchases within its chat interface, strengthening its agentic commerce offering. Reporting by Juby Babu in Mexico City and Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Leroy Leo Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

You can get early access to Perplexity's new browser and a free year of Pro if you have either of these apps installed

If you're anything like me, one thing that always stings is paying for subscriptions like Spotify, Netflix, and Amazon Prime every month. And in my eyes, one of the biggest drawbacks of AI tools is how quickly your list of paid services keeps growing. The worst part? AI subscriptions tend to be expensive. Luckily, users in the US can currently get a 12-month free subscription to one of my favorite AI tools to date, Perplexity. And the best part? You just need to have either of the accounts most people already use to manage their subscriptions. All you need is a PayPal or Venmo account Today, PayPal announced a partnership with Perplexity, allowing Venmo and PayPal customers in the US and select global markets to get a 12-month trial of Perplexity Pro, which is typically valued at $200 per year. With Perplexity Pro, users get access to a wide range of premium features, including 10x as many citations in answers, access to Perplexity Labs, unlimited file and photo uploads, extended access to Perplexity Research, extended access to image generation, limited access to video generation, one subscription for all the latest AI models including GPT-5 and Claude Sonnet 4, and much more. If a free 12-month Perplexity Pro subscription isn't enough to intrigue you (though it should be), this new offer also gives users early access to Perplexity's new Comet AI browser, which launched in July. If you aren't familiar with Comet, it's Perplexity's AI-powered Chromium-based browser, designed to blend web browsing with real-time AI assistance. With the browser, you can quickly access Perplexity whenever you want without needing to manually search for the website, since the Perplexity AI Assistant resides on the sidebar at all times. The AI can also perform different tasks for you, like clearing up distracting tabs, browsing the web, finding a flight ticket, grouping all related tabs by content, and more. Comet also integrates directly with services you rely on daily, like Gmail and Google Calendar, so it can perform tasks such as identifying important emails and even replying to them. Before PayPal announced this offer, only Perplexity Max subscribers and those lucky enough to get off the Comet waitlist were able to try out and use Comet. Another way to get access to the browser was through a referral code from someone who already had Comet, as each existing user could refer up to two additional people. That system wasn't ideal, because if you didn't personally know someone with access, there was no way in. With this new PayPal offer, however, anyone eligible can finally test out Comet without relying on referrals or waiting on the list. PayPal customers can find this new offer directly within PayPal's new subscriptions hub, which is essentially a one-stop destination to view, manage, and discover all their recurring subscriptions in a single place. The subscription hub is available to US customers starting today and will roll out to additional markets later this month. Starting today, PayPal and Venmo users within the United States can sign up for Perplexity Pro directly in the respective apps. Keep in mind that you won't be eligible for this offer if you've already subscribed to Perplexity Pro (or have before). Each user will also only get one invite per person. The offer is valid through December 31, 2025. PayPal explains that global customers in select markets will also be able to activate this offer through different marketing channels, like email or via the dedicated landing page online.

PayPal and Venmo users get a free year of Perplexity Pro and early access to its AI browser

Perplexity, the NVIDIA- and Bezos-backed AI company, with PayPal to get its Comet browser in front of millions of the financial tech giant's users. The deal will see PayPal and Venmo customers in the US and select international markets gain access to the AI-powered browser, as well as a free 12-month subscription to Perplexity Pro, which normally costs $200. There are, of course, some conditions. The promotion is part of PayPal's new subscription hub, where users can manage all their recurring PayPal payments. The company is also offering users a $50 credit when they link and pay for three subscriptions using the hub. PayPal users in the US can claim their free 12-month Perplexity Pro subscription from the PayPal app today. Likewise, Venmo users can access the offer from within the Venmo app. The deal is on offer through the end of this year, and the Perplexity Pro subscription will auto-renew after the free 12 months is up at the then current rate unless cancelled. The Comet browser was in earlier this summer before as part of Perplexity's . Perplexity's AI is integrated into Comet and serves as the browser's default search engine. This incorporation allows users to pull up the AI in a sidebar to ask questions about what they see on screen, summarize text and even take actions on behalf of the user, like sending an email or looking up directions on Google Maps. The browser is built on , the same open-source codebase beneath Chrome, Edge and Opera. Perplexity actually in August for $34.5 billion when it appeared that the courts might force a divestment, but a that Google can keep its browser.

Got PayPal or Venmo? You get a free year of Perplexity AI: How to sign up.

PayPal and Venmo users in the U.S. and certain global markets are getting free early access to Perplexity Comet, the search engine startup's AI-powered browser. On Wednesday, PayPal, which owns Venmo, announced a partnership with Perplexity as part of its new subscriptions hub, for managing subscriptions linked to PayPal. This is part of an offer for a free 12-month trial of Perplexity Pro, which offers premium features like unlimited searches with advanced models and access to third party models from OpenAI, Anthropic Claude, and Grok. This subscription normally costs $200 a year. Perplexity launched Comet in July as a browser that weaves generative AI into the web-browsing experience. Specifically, that includes stuff like an AI assistant in the sidebar and AI models that can do the searching for you across the web and open tabs. Comet can also take action on your behalf, such as adding items to your shopping cart and managing your inbox and calendar. Of course all of these features require extensive access to your data, so any semblance of privacy basically goes out the window. Even though Perplexity stores most of the data on your device, you're still giving Perplexity access to your email, browsing behavior, and more. When Comet launched, it was initially available only to Perplexity Max ($200 a month) users, but has since rolled out to Perplexity Pro subscribers. Mashable got early access to the AI browser and tested out some of its features. We liked some of the summarization features and the sidecar AI assistant, but the agentic capabilities, i.e. the features that can do shopping and ordering for you, simply didn't work well enough to replace the handful of quick steps a human normally does. However, Venmo and PayPal users no longer have to weigh the cost-benefit analysis of signing up for Perplexity Comet. Now you get a whole year to try it out. Just remember that the true cost might be what's left of your privacy. There are a few different ways to redeem your free Perplexity Pro trial:

PayPal and Venmo users won't want to miss these Perplexity AI perks

Get free use of Perplexity Pro and access to its AI-powered Comet browser. PayPal has partnered with ChatGPT-rival Perplexity to offer U.S.-based PayPal and Venmo users some tasty perks. Users in some international markets are also eligible. The benefits include free access to Perplexity's new desktop-based AI browser, called Comet. The desktop app acts as a personal assistant by answering questions, summarizing content, and helping with various tasks as you browse the web. The AI-powered Comet browser still has limited availability, so the deal offers a great chance to get in early and take it for a spin Recommended Videos You'll also get a free 12-month subscription to the Perplexity Pro AI search assistant, worth $200. The deal, which is available until the end of the year, is part of PayPal's effort to promote its new subscription hub, which the company describes as "an all-in-one way to discover and track subscriptions," with customers able to update their payment method across multiple providers in just a few taps, without having to manually log into multiple websites. The hub is located inside the PayPal app. It's from there that you can sign up to the Perplexity offer, or by visiting this page. Venmo users can also claim the offer via the Venmo app. Global customers in select markets can activate the offer via the dedicated landing page, or wait to see if PayPal gets in touch about the offer via email. Take note: The Perplexity Pro subscription will auto-renew (at the regular rate of $200 a year) after the first 12 months, unless you cancel it. With PayPal's massive user base, the offer could bring Perplexity a lot of new users as it battles to compete with the likes of OpenAI's ChatGPT, Google's Gemini, and Microsoft's CoPilot tools. It also shows Perplexity taking another step forward with a broader rollout of its Comet browser, which Perplexity describes as "like a personal shopper and personal assistant all in one." If you have a PayPal or Venmo account, it feels like a no-brainer to take advantage of the offer, especially if you've yet to try Perplexity or are only using the free tier. If you're not a member of PayPal, you can simply sign up to take advantage of the offer, though you will have to wait 30 days before gaining access to Perplexity Pro and Comet.

Early Access to Perplexity's AI Browser Is Expensive, but You Can Try It for Free Right Now

Did you know you can customize Google to filter out garbage? Take these steps for better search results, including adding my work at Lifehacker as a preferred source. If you've had interest in Comet, Perplexity's AI web browser, you likely know it's well gatekept. Perplexity has limited testing to a small pool of its Max subscribers, which costs $200 per month. Unless you're willing to burn $2,400 a year on an AI subscription, you have likely resigned yourself to look into Comet from afar. While Perplexity Max will remain $200 a month for the foreseeable future, you don't actually have to pay this much in order to give Comet a spin. In fact, you don't have to pay anything at all. That's because Perplexity is now offering access to both Comet as well as Perplexity Pro, the company's $20 per month ($200 per year) subscription, for free, for one year. The deal is through PayPal and its subsidiary, Venmo. The company announced the partnership in a press release on Wednesday, spinning the news as an AI-enhanced way for PayPal users to shop. That's per Ryan Foutty, VP of Business at Perplexity, who said, "The Comet browser is like a personal shopper and personal assistant all in one, so we're excited that PayPal users will have early access to Comet." Whether users will actually treat Comet as a "personal shopper" is certainly up in the air. For its part, Perplexity pitches Comet as an AI-powered browser that acts as a both a "personal assistant" and "thinking partner." You can look things up like you would with another internet-ready AI chatbot, but Comet is also able to perform tasks on your behalf. That reportedly includes shopping, but also things like booking meetings, replying to emails, researching, and autofilling passwords. PayPal is offering Perplexity Pro, and Comet, through its new subscription hub: The company says this feature is designed to help users manage their subscriptions in one central location, and, to kick it off, your Perplexity Pro trial and subscription can be found here. As part of the promotion, if you link and pay for at least three subscriptions in this new hub, PayPal will credit you $50 cash back. How to sign up for Perplexity Pro and Comet for free If you're interested in this offer, you have two ways to take advantage of it. PayPal says you can either find the promo in the PayPal app or the Venmo app. I didn't find the promo in my Venmo app, but after downloading the PayPal app and signing into my account, I saw Perplexity Pro available under "Featured offers." You'll need to link your PayPal or Venmo to the Perplexity subscription, and you'll need to create a Perplexity account if you don't have one already. If you have a Perplexity Pro subscription, you cannot take advantage of this offer. While my Perplexity Pro subscription activated without issue, I'm not yet able to take advantage of the Comet offer. Right now, heading to the official Comet site while logged into my account, I have the option to sign up for the waitlist, or "skip the line" by upgrading to Pro. If I choose the latter, since I have Pro, it simply takes me to a page letting me know about the perks of the Pro plan -- albeit, with no mention of Comet. This might be something Perplexity is taking its time rolling out. Until then, I've put my account on the waitlist, just to see if that speeds things up.

PayPal, Venmo users to gain early access to Perplexity's Comet AI browser - The Economic Times

The Nvidia-backed startup provides artificial intelligence search tools that deliver information summaries to users, looking to take on OpenAI and Google in the AI-powered search industry.PayPal and Venmo users in the US and some global markets will receive early access to Perplexity's new AI-powered Comet browser through a 12-month trial of the startup's Pro subscription, the digital payments company said on Wednesday. The Nvidia-backed startup provides artificial intelligence search tools that deliver information summaries to users, looking to take on OpenAI and Google in the AI-powered search industry. The Perplexity Pro subscription is worth $200 a year or $20 a month. It is one of the first offers now available to customers in PayPal's new subscriptions hub, which helps users view and manage recurring subscription payments, the company said. The offer also provides Perplexity access to Paypal's more than 430 million users, as of the second quarter, enabling easy onboarding into a 12‑month Pro trial. The AI startup launched Comet in early July and made it available to a wider set of users last month. The browser integrates Perplexity's AI tools directly into web browsing, allowing users to ask questions about personal data like emails, calendars, or browsing history, and perform tasks such as scheduling meetings or summarizing webpages. Users in the US can sign up for Perplexity Pro directly in the PayPal app starting Wednesday, while global customers in select markets can activate the offer by selecting PayPal at checkout when signing up for Perplexity online. Perplexity is also working on a mobile version of Comet and the company was in talks with smartphone makers to distribute the browser on mobile devices, Perplexity CEO told Reuters in July. Comet is available to Perplexity Max and Pro subscribers, with broader access rolling out and Comet Plus features included for paying tiers. Perplexity first partnered with PayPal in May to enable direct purchases within its chat interface, strengthening its agentic commerce offering.

PayPal gives users early access to Perplexity AI browser

This content has been selected, created and edited by the Finextra editorial team based upon its relevance and interest to our community. PayPal and Venmo customers in the US and unnamed other markets will be able to skip the waitlist for the Comet browser through a free 12-month trial of Perplexity Pro valued at $200. Launched in July, Comet integrates AI outfit Perplexity's tools directly into web browsing, providing an integrated AI assistant, native answer-focused search, and product comparisons. Ryan Foutty, VP, business, Perplexity, says: "The Comet browser is like a personal shopper and personal assistant all in one, so we're excited that PayPal users will have early access to Comet." Diego Scotti, GM, consumer group, PayPal, adds: "It's exciting to deliver offers and tools that our customers request most, meeting their needs and helping them navigate their financial lives with greater simplicity, added convenience, and even more rewards." Perplexity Pro is one of the first offers made available to customers directly in PayPal's new subscriptions hub, a single destination to view and manage recurring subscription payments. Users can sign up for the package directly in the PayPal app.

PayPal Offers Early Access to Perplexity's Comet Browser | PYMNTS.com

By completing this form, you agree to receive marketing communications from PYMNTS and to the sharing of your information with our sponsor, if applicable, in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Terms and Conditions. The offering, announced Wednesday (Sept. 3) and open to Venmo and PayPal customers in the U.S. and certain global markets, lets users experience Comet before its larger public rollout. "The Comet browser is like a personal shopper and personal assistant all in one, so we're excited that PayPal users will have early access to Comet," Ryan Foutty, VP of Business at Perplexity, said in a news release provided to PYMNTS. "In conjunction with Perplexity Pro, we're arming PayPal and Venmo customers with powerful, accurate AI that's useful throughout their daily lives." The release notes that Perplexity Pro is among the first offers now available to customers directly in PayPal's new subscriptions hub, which lets users view and manage recurring subscription payments from one location. Perplexity announced the launch of Comet in July, saying the new browser would allow users to answer questions, carry out tasks and conduct research from a single interface. "Tabs that piled up waiting for your return now join one intelligent interface that understands how your mind works," the company said in its announcement. "Context-switching between dozens of applications, sites and interfaces has stolen the focus and flow that bring joy to our work and fuel our curiosity." Last week, the company introduced a subscription program called Comet Plus that it said gives users access to premium content from trusted publishers and journalists, while offering publishers a better compensation model. The company has set aside $42.5 million for a revenue-sharing program that compensates publishers when their material is used by the Comet browser or Perplexity's AI assistant, with 80% going to publishers and Perplexity getting the rest. "AI is helping to create a better internet, but publishers still need to get paid," Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas told Bloomberg News. "So we think this is actually the right solution, and we're happy to make adjustments along the way." Meanwhile, PYMNTS wrote recently about the impact of AI-powered search from the likes of Perplexity and Google on the traditional SEO marketing model for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). That model, the report said, is becoming less effective as AI-driven tools take over the discovery phase.