Perplexity Comet Browser finally learns how to multitask on iPad

Perplexity’s Comet browser now has proper iPadOS support, including multiple windows and Split View, closing a major gap from its tablet launch. The update should make the AI browser more practical for research, multitasking, and everyday iPad use, especially for students and professionals. The news is modestly positive for Comet adoption, but likely limited in near-term market impact.

Analysis

This is a distribution-quality improvement, not a breakthrough feature launch. The meaningful implication is that Perplexity is trying to move from being a “search sidecar” to a default workflow layer on Apple devices, and tablet multitasking is the missing piece that makes that credible. If Comet becomes sticky on iPad, the company gains a lower-cost engagement loop versus paid acquisition, with more queries per user and better retention coming from habit rather than novelty.

The competitive read-through is less about Safari and more about browser-stack monetization. Apple is unlikely to be directly threatened near term, but every incremental minute inside Comet weakens the default search and discovery funnel that feeds Google. The second-order effect is on AI-native browsers and assistants: once one player makes the iPad experience feel native, the bar rises for Arc, Chrome with extensions, and any assistant that still feels bolted-on rather than integrated.

The main risk is that this is still a feature enhancement, not a demand inflection. Adoption on iPad could remain concentrated among power users unless Perplexity proves that the browser meaningfully improves retention and query frequency over 1-2 quarters. If Apple tightens platform privileges around web-app behavior, default browser switching, or assistant integrations, the product’s best-case distribution advantage could be blunted quickly.

The contrarian view is that the market may be underestimating how small UI improvements can drive large habit shifts in AI products. In consumer software, “works like a laptop on tablet” is often the threshold that converts casual trial into default use. If Comet meaningfully increases daily active sessions, the upside is not just browser share but better conversion economics across Perplexity’s broader paid product stack.

Key Decisions for Investors

• Maintain a tactical long bias in AI-native consumer software names on any weakness, with Perplexity-adjacent winners in mind; use a 3-6 month horizon because adoption/retention data will matter more than the feature announcement itself.
• Pair trade: long GOOG / short AAPL on a 1-3 month horizon if you expect incremental query share to shift away from default search funnels; risk is limited unless Perplexity proves material scale.
• Buy a small basket of AI browser/assistant names on pullbacks versus legacy browser exposure (e.g., long AI-software growth basket, short software generalists), targeting a 1-2 quarter window where product engagement metrics can rerate sentiment.
• If Comet usage data starts showing rising repeat engagement, add to long PERP-like private comps or public AI productivity leaders through call structures rather than outright equity to cap downside from adoption disappointment.
• Avoid chasing the move immediately; wait for either App Store traction or public usage metrics, because the best entry is likely after the market has seen whether iPad multitasking actually converts curiosity into daily habit.