Perplexity AI, an AI-powered search engine backed by Jeff Bezos, is facing scrutiny over allegations of unethical practices. Reports indicate that Perplexity AI has been found to provide inaccurate information about its user agent and is accused of ignoring robots.txt files, which are used by websites to manage crawler access. Investigations by Wired and other sources suggest that Perplexity is using surreptitious methods to scrape content, raising questions about its transparency and adherence to web standards. Despite these controversies, Perplexity AI has announced a strategic partnership with SoftBank in April to expand its user base in Japan and take on Google. As part of this deal, SoftBank customers will receive one year of Perplexity Pro for free.
Some people are struggling to come to terms with Perplexity's success. https://t.co/RcdpoGXUGo
I have been using perplexity for a while and while it is very good, I find I ALWAYS have to double-check facts from it... https://t.co/CkByqdkk47
Wired has discovered that Perplexity’s crawler ignores robots.txt directives that block AI crawlers. Given the choice of spending millions licensing content like Google & OpenAI or having outdated info, it’s sad but not surprising some startups are taking the third option. https://t.co/DCcEHsudJT
I 💝 @perplexity_ai and hope this report from @WIRED accusing them of bypassing web restrictions (surreptitiously scraping content via secret IP addresses) is unfounded. Who uses Perplexity; what do you think? https://t.co/9dHpHRHqwu
I 💝 @perplexity_ai and hope this report from @WIRED accusing Perplexity of bypassing website restrictions (surreptitiously scraping content via secret IP addresses) is unfounded. Who uses Perplexity and what do you think? https://t.co/9dHpHRHqwu
Perplexity Is a Bullshit Machine https://t.co/kps2yIRNcU
Analysis: Perplexity seems to scrape sites using surreptitious methods, ignoring robots.txt, with a Perplexity-tied machine doing so on Wired and other sites (Wired) https://t.co/MJmjNQdGVT 📫 Subscribe: https://t.co/OyWeKSRpIM https://t.co/7idP0cDB2Z
Perplexity seems to scrape sites using surreptitious methods ignoring their robots.txt, with a machine tied to Perplexity seen doing so on Wired and other sites (Wired) https://t.co/KumMo3G1Gv https://t.co/5hH4JLyScd
AI Startup Perplexity Is a Bullshit Machine https://t.co/fIzp0kBS17
Well, Perplexity is screwed. https://t.co/nG269Q93gn
A @wired investigation found that Perplexity is ignoring robots.txt -- despite vowing to honor block requests. Perplexity has published a list of IP addresses its crawlers use. The company seems to be scraping sites using an IP address *not* on that list. https://t.co/jYab333xk8
NEW: Perplexity is ignoring the Robots Exclusion Protocol (robots.txt), using a secret server to regurgitate news articles and investigations that take reporters years to create, often without giving us credit. W/ @timmarchman https://t.co/CuD3bm3fGP
what’s my perplexity?
Excited to be partnering with @SoftBank to grow Perplexity in Japan! https://t.co/ePCZYCywpl
Perplexity now displays results for temperature, currency conversion and simple math, so you don’t have to use Google: Perplexity could already fetch this data from the web and display results in a descriptive way, but the company is… https://t.co/t5Q4wh4Jkf #AI #AInews #AItips
Curiosity speaks every language. That's why we're excited to partner with @SoftBank to bring Perplexity to their customers across Japan! Together, we're empowering millions more to explore, learn, and grow. SoftBank customers will get 1 year of Perplexity Pro free! https://t.co/X5oEqH6nuk
Perplexity AI Is Lying about Their User Agent https://t.co/pugxBUDaSp
Wow, big news! SoftBank and Perplexity team up to take on Google. A strategic partnership opens up new opportunities in SoftBank's home market. Find out all the details at https://t.co/QOQPeCLsrL
SoftBank ties up with Perplexity https://t.co/tqUPpR8w7a
SoftBank ties up with Perplexity: After announcing a strategic partnership with SoftBank in April, Perplexity — the AI search engine that has ambitions to take on Google — is now using the deal to expand its user base, and data… https://t.co/krMwZudJTl #AI #AInews #AItips
Claim of the moment: Perplexity AI ignores robot.txt files and crawls websites even when the site owner says no. https://t.co/YNbrckIza6
➡️ Perplexity AI has been found to provide inaccurate information about their user agent, raising questions about transparency. 🤖🕵️♂️ https://t.co/AoNUuZfxUB
Jeff Bezos-backed Perplexity AI wants to upend search business. https://t.co/sY0lCUrgll