Unveiling the Power of Siri + Perplexity: Mastering Internet Searches with GPT
Greetings, everyone! In this video, I'll show you how you can connect Siri with perplexity and use voice to search the internet with the technology that is behind chat GPT.
The Problem with Using Just Google
So, what's the problem with just using Google as we always did? The thing is, we have so much information on the internet these days. It's more information than even the richest human on earth had available just a few decades ago. We can access all this information for free. The obstacle to not using it all the time is the friction that exists between that information on the internet and having that information in our head.
In many everyday situations, like when we are in a conversation or we quickly need to look up something, it's just not convenient to open an app or go on the internet and do a Google search, and then find the right link. That's exactly where voice search can access perplexity directly and ideally give you the relevant information really quickly, within just a few seconds.
How Does it Work?
Perplexity is a website and an app that uses GPT technology to search the internet and provide you with up-to-date information, including sources. Now, you can use perplexity as an app on the iPhone, link it with another app called Siri Shortcuts, and then access it directly with the Siri voice interface.
Let me show you how this works on my iPhone. I'll search in perplexity: "Who wrote the books about Elon Musk and Steve Jobs?" Horizon wrote the books about Elon Musk and Steve Jobs. Otherwise, the answer is quite long, so no need to listen to all of it. But what you need to know is that you cannot answer a follow-up question directly in Siri. However, you can do so in the perplexity app.
In the app, you can scroll down to the threads and see your previous questions. You have the full answer, including all the sources, and you have the option to ask a follow-up question—even with your voice.
As you saw in the example just now, you can ask perplexity a question in Siri and then follow up in the perplexity app, having a conversation with follow-up questions. What you currently cannot do is ask follow-up questions directly in the Siri interface. This is actually something you can already do with chat GPT in Siri. Check out the video I made about that topic.
Another limitation is that you cannot see the sources in Siri's response. You will just get a number read out as one, two, three, or whatever. If you want to see the specific source, you still need to go into the perplexity app.
I should also point out that sometimes there are significant waiting times until you get a response, around 5 to 10 seconds. Other times, perplexity cannot answer in time, and Siri will just tell you that there is a connection issue and provide no answer. I can just hope, and I'm also confident, that perplexity will be improving the technology and solving this problem over the coming months.
Siri with Perplexity vs. Siri with Chat GPT
Let's take a look at how Siri with perplexity answers questions differently from Siri with chat GPT and just plain Siri as it is pre-installed on every iPhone.
The Weather
Question: "How's the weather?"
- Vanilla Siri: Able to answer
- Perplexity and GPT: Unable to answer
Historical Question
Question: "What's Napoleon's birthday?"
- All three (Siri, perplexity, and GPT): Able to answer
- Perplexity's answer was unnecessarily long
News
Question: "What are today's news?"
- Siri and perplexity: Able to provide news
- GPT: Unable to answer
Business
Question: "Did Apple make a profit in 2007?"
- Perplexity: Full answer with number
- GPT: Correct answer without numbers
- Siri: Unable to answer
Jokes
Question: "Tell me a joke"
- Siri and perplexity: Able to tell a joke
- GPT: Unable to answer
As you can see, perplexity and Siri both outperform chat GPT and Siri in various categories. Perplexity's strength lies in its ability to directly access the internet and provide detailed information, whereas chat GPT has no internet access at all, and Siri will only provide you with a few random links that may or may not be relevant.
Setting Up Siri with Perplexity
Now that you know what perplexity and Siri are all about, let me quickly show you how you can set it up on your own iPhone.
First, you need to enable Siri on your iPhone. You can do this by going to the Settings app and selecting "Siri & Search." Choose the options that work best for you.
Next, you need to download the perplexity app from the App Store. Once installed, you can directly ask questions within the app itself. However, in this video, we are focusing on using perplexity through Siri.
Finally, you need to download the Siri Shortcuts app. In the app, scroll down until you find perplexity. Enable the Siri function.
That's it! You're good to go and can try it out. The best part is that this setup is completely free, as long as you have an iPhone. Perplexity offers a premium plan, but it's not necessary for this setup. Siri Shortcuts is provided by Apple for free, and Siri comes pre-installed on every iPhone.
That was perplexity AI together with Siri—a different way to access the internet with a voice interface. I hope you enjoyed it, and I'll see you in the next one!
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Can I ask follow-up questions directly in Siri?
No, you can only ask follow-up questions directly in the perplexity app, not in the Siri interface.
2. Can I see the sources in Siri's response?
No, you will only get a number in Siri's response. To see the specific sources, you need to go into the perplexity app.
3. Are there any waiting times when using perplexity with Siri?
Yes, there might be significant waiting times until you get a response, usually around 5 to 10 seconds.
4. Can Siri always provide an answer using perplexity?
No, there may be times when perplexity cannot answer in time, and Siri will inform you of a connection issue and provide no answer.
5. Is perplexity available for free?
Yes, perplexity is available for free on the iPhone. They also offer a premium plan, but it is not necessary to use Siri with perplexity.
