At the age of 30, Aravind Srinivas was privileged to be named in TIME magazine’s “TIME 100 Most Influential People in AI” last year. Photo: courtesy Wikimedia Commons
Why is Aravind Srinivas, Chennai-born CEO of Perplexity AI, in news?
The AI pioneer aims to replace recruiters, executive assistants with AI-powered Comet browser; Airtel partners for free Pro plan access in India
At the age of 30, Aravind Srinivas was featured in TIME magazine’s “TIME 100 Most Influential People in AI” last year.
The CEO of Perplexity AI has been in the news recently for his company’s latest product Comet – an AI-powered browser he claims can accomplish the tasks normally handled by recruiters and executive assistants.
Who is Aravind Srinivas?
Aravind Srinivas, one of the pioneers in the artificial intelligence space, is an Indian scientist and entrepreneur who moved to the US to do a doctorate in computer science.
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He co-founded Perplexity AI in 2022 with Johnny Ho, Andy Konwinski, and Denis Yarats. The three-year-old firm has received funding from investors ranging from Nvidia and Jeff Bezos to Nat Friedman and Elad Gil.
Where is he from?
Aravind was born in Chennai, India in 1994. He completed bachelor and post graduate degrees in electrical engineering from the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Madras.
He migrated to the United States to pursue a Ph.D in computer science at the University of California, Berkeley.
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Aravind then specialised in the latest technologies of machine learning and artificial intelligence, holding research positions in these areas in DeepMind, Google Brain, and OpenAI.
Why is he in the news?
Aravind Srinivas and his partners in Perplexity AI claim their products aim to provide users with direct answers to questions through its “AI-powered answer engine”.
While describing his company’s browser called Comet, Aravind says it can carry out tasks usually done by recruiters, including the sourcing of candidates for jobs, checking profiles of candidates, sending messages, scheduling interviews, and managing email communication with very little inputs from the user.
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He claims that Comet could fulfill the role of an executive assistant by working quietly in the background, reducing the burden on internal support roles, and allowing users to focus instead on more strategic requirements.
Comet operates by getting data from tools that are commonly used like Google Calendar, Gmail, and LinkedIn.
Comet’s utility
Aravind says they believe that Comet could evolve into an operating system that is browser-based and continually learns and adapts to the preferences of users.
Perplexity’s CEO feels that though Comet comes with a premium pricing and invite-only access, its utility will justify its cost.
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Airtel has reportedly partnered with Perplexity to offer its customers in India free access to the Perplexity Pro plan for one year. It would give Airtel customers access to its premium features that include expanded usage limits on the Perplexity AI platform, priority access to new tools, and quicker responses.
Aravind has emphasised that the AI field evolves every three to six months, and that there will be challenges in adapting. He believes that those who learn to use AI effectively will thrive in jobs or as entrepreneurs.