Advanced Guide to Perplexity AI

Get answers, organize threads, and build pages to become smarter

Earlier this year, I wrote an introductory guide to using Perplexity.AI for all your search needs, and compared its capabilities to ChatGPT. Since then, I have increasingly turned to Perplexity for a number of use cases because the more I use it, the more I love it. And here’s why: it’s not really a search tool. It’s an answer tool. When you ask a question, Perplexity doesn't give you a list of links like a regular search engine. Instead, it uses advanced artificial intelligence to understand exactly what you're asking.

It looks through many web pages and articles to find the most related information. The best part - Perplexity puts this information into a simple, brief answer, like it's chatting with you.

And unlike ChatGPT and other generative AI tools, Perplexity’s answers are significantly more reliable, citing all its information with links and sources.

This week, I’ll we’ll go deeper with Perplexity, exploring its full features with specific use cases that are applicable to public affairs professionals. Specifically, how I use it for:

1. My morning news briefings

2. Sourcing helpful academic papers

3. Analyzing annual and quarterly reports

4. Producing guides and other resources

If you haven’t read my original intro to Perplexity, I suggest starting there. In that guide, I cover:

• How Perplexity complements traditional search engines

• How it outperforms ChatGPT when you need to find accurate answers to questions

• Practical tips for getting the most out of it.

Now, let’s take this powerful platform for a spin!