Perplexity AI's Comet Browser: Automating Recruitment and Administrative Tasks

Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas says AI will completely automate two office jobs with just one prompt

Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas has said his company's new AI browser, Comet, will soon automate two white-collar roles that every workplace depends upon: recruiters and administrative assistants. Srinivas, while speaking on The Verge's Decoder podcast, detailed how Comet's built-in AI agent can access applications like Gmail, LinkedIn, and Google Calendar to completely transform knowledge work. "A recruiter's work worth one week is just one prompt: sourcing and reach outs," he said during the Thursday episode. The AI-native browser is currently in invite-only beta for premium users. It can generate candidate lists, extract contact information, and send personalised outreach emails, tasks traditionally handled by recruiting coordinators and sourcers. Srinivas displayed scenarios where Comet could identify Stanford alumni who previously worked at Anthropic, compile their information in Google Sheets, and draft personalised cold outreach messages. Comet is not just limited to recruiting tasks. Srinivas said the browser can play the role of several executive assistants, and can carry out tasks including email management, calendar coordination, and meeting preparation. The AI can "keep following up, keep track of responses, update Google Sheets, mark status as responded or in progress, sync with Google Calendar, and resolve conflicts to schedule meetings," he said. Srinivas wants the browser to evolve into an AI operating system that continuously runs background tasks and executes commands through natural language prompts. He believes users will pay premium prices for meaningful automation, suggesting people might spend "$2,000 for a prompt" if it helps generate significant business value. Srinivas is among tech executives who believe AI will create a widespread disruption to office jobs. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei has suggested AI could eliminate 50% of entry-level positions within five years, while Ford CEO Jim Farley warned that artificial intelligence will "replace literally half of all white-collar workers." However, some are on the other side of the spectrum. Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang frame AI as an augmentation tool rather than wholesale replacement technology. Despite differing perspectives, Srinivas issued a clear warning: "People who are at the frontier of using AI are going to be way more employable than people who are not. (With TOI inputs)

Aravind Srinivas Predicts Perplexity AI's Comet Browser May Replace Two Jobs

Arvind Srinivas Admits Comet Can't Handle Complex Prompts Till Now, but Still, it Can Pose a Threat to Recruiters Perplexity Comet is set to revolutionize the browsing experience. Aravind Srinivas, the company's CEO, has claimed that the AI web browser can automate two essential white-collar roles, recruiters and administrative assistants, with only a single natural language prompt. In an interview a few weeks back, Srinivas outlined how Comet integrates with apps like Google, LinkedIn, and Google Calendar to streamline essential hiring activities. It includes candidate sourcing, candidate outreach, email approach, scheduling, spreadsheet tracking, and meeting preparation.