Like most of you, I have fallen down countless rabbit holes in Google searches. “How to make a latte?” turns into “Latte vs. americano?” which turns into “How bad is caffeine for you?” and ends with “Coffee alternatives.”
Like most of you, I have fallen down countless rabbit holes in Google searches. “How to make a latte?” turns into “Latte vs. americano?” which turns into “How bad is caffeine for you?” and ends with “Coffee alternatives.”
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Often, though, I’ve found myself frustrated by how many times I have to reword the same query in traditional search engines to nudge the browser to comprehend what I’m asking.
Not to mention how exasperating it is to scroll through unrelated sponsored ads before getting to the meat of my search.
Enter AI-generated search engines.
Table of Contents
What are AI search engines?
AI search engines are search engines that use some combination of web crawlers, innate artificial intelligence, and user data to improve users’ search experiences and provide more pertinent responses. They have become some of the top search engines today due to their intuitiveness.
You’ll find less of a need to clarify your query with AI search engines because they are built to better understand human intent. And, your responses will often be summed up in AI-generated copy with cited sources, rather than forcing you to click through several URLs to check their relevance.
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How I Test AI Search Engines
Since all these tools have the same purpose — answering your question by scouring the web for suitable sources and links that can be combined with innate AI knowledge or chat capabilities to provide the most accurate answer — it was easy for me to test them all in the same way.
I simply used the same two questions across every AI search engine and measured the success of the search engine by how it answered the questions. One being more of a straightforward, factual question and the other a broader question. Below are the seven best options from my research.
7 Best AI Search Engines
1. Perplexity
I kicked off with Perplexity, which has been all the rage lately. There’s a lot to know about this search engine, but most importantly, many are admitting Perplexity has replaced Google in their lives.
It’s like a mix of ChatGPT and Google. Meaning that it can answer your questions in a human-like manner, but it pulls its facts from a quick search of all the articles available, rather than having an innate knowledge base.
I started with my straightforward question: What’s the biggest city in America? The first thing I noted was that Perplexity has a very similar interface to ChatGPT since it uses OpenAI’s language models.
Outside of the sources linked at the top and referred to throughout the answer, Perplexity also shares relevant images on the right-hand side, with an option to search videos or generate images.
After this search result, I tested out a more thought-provoking question. I wanted to gauge how AI search engines perform when asked a question that doesn’t have a specific, singular answer. I asked, “How do I become a better blog writer?”
What I Like
- ChatGPT users like myself will appreciate that Perplexity’s interface is familiar, as it eases the transition period.
- Unlike ChatGPT, though, Perplexity promises answers that are always correct and cited from many sources, including academic research and Reddit threads.
- Perplexity links to several references at the top and cites sources throughout its response. Decades of English and History teachers drilling into me to cite my sources in papers have helped me develop an appreciation for this kind of verification.
- The visual sources are helpful for those who prefer Google Image and Video results over Web results.
- At the bottom of your response, you will find a section called “Keep exploring,” where Perplexity suggests similar questions that you can automatically search and get an AI-generated response. For someone like me, who typically has dozens of tabs open when researching a single topic, this feature would keep all my research in one place.
What Needs Improvement
- Honestly, nothing. I have already started using this in place of my usual relentless Google searching.
Pricing
- Standard plan: Free
- Professional plan: $20/month
2. Google Gemini
Gemini, formerly known as Bard, is Google’s AI chatbot, and it may be attractive to those who have grown accustomed to Google’s many revolutionary products.
Some may have noticed that Google has incorporated an “AI Overview” into some of its search results. Still, Gemini is a separate tool that can be used for specifically AI-generated responses.
In my first question test, I noted how quickly Gemini pulled up an answer, and how short it was.
In comparison, I noticed a huge difference in the results for my second question. It’s clear Gemini answers questions very differently based on how direct or abstract they are.
What I Like
- Gemini’s design is aesthetically pleasing, and I like that the homepage opened up with a message stating, “Hello, Swetha” which showcases its humanity and personalization.
- Gemini answered my first question, “What’s the biggest city in America?” as short and sweet as I had hoped for. I appreciate that it didn’t try to give me any unnecessary information.
- It has a “Double-check response” feature, in which you can have Google perform a secondary search of your question to ensure its accuracy.
What Needs Improvement
- Gemini provides text-only responses, which is very dissimilar from Google’s image, video, and news results, so it surprised me.
- The search engine has a disclaimer at the bottom, stating, “Gemini may display inaccurate info, including about people, so double-check its responses.” While I appreciate the honesty, it doesn’t hold up against Perplexity, which promises complete accuracy.
- At the bottom of your search results is a “Search related topics” feature, which is helpful if you want to keep your research going. However, these take you out of Gemini and back into Google, which I saw as a sign that Gemini hasn’t been fully flushed out yet and still relies on Google.
Pricing
- Free of charge plan: $0
- Pay-as-you-go plan: Price varies based on a cost-per-token model.
3. Brave Search
Brave Search is a search engine that boasts security and privacy while browsing the internet. It does this by not tracking users or their queries. Brave Search can’t share or sell personal data because it never gets collected.
Thus, it already proves beneficial to those who may work on public computers or networks. But, recently, Brave Search introduced a privacy-focused AI answer engine to put it in the running against other AI search engines on this list.
I dove into my first test question to see how Brave held up against Perplexity and Gemini.
Brave Search resembles Google and other classic search engines since that’s what it inherently is. In this way, it may be more attractive for search engine traditionalists wary about trying out a brand-spanking new AI tool.
After this, I tested out my second question on the search engine and was met with a similar look and style of response.
What I Like
- Brave Search is incredibly conventional in appearance, which I actually appreciated. I’m so used to Google’s interface when searching random queries, and it’s helpful that Brave Search is modeled similarly.
- The emphasis on privacy and security is essential. There’s nothing more frustrating than when you mean to search something on Incognito mode and forget, or when you desperately want to avoid being served dozens of ads about Bali just because, one time, you searched “flights to Bali.”
- Brave Search shows you “Context,” in which it links to all its references. I like that these are all at the bottom of your search result, so they don’t distract from your reading experience.
- If you like Brave Search, you can make Brave your default browser.
What Needs Improvement
I searched normally and with the “Answer with AI” feature for both questions and received identical search results in both modes. This doesn’t exactly encourage people to use the AI feature if they feel their results will be the same.
Pricing
- Data for AI plans:
- Free plan: $0
- Base plan: $5 CPM
- Pro plan: $9 CPM
- Data for Search plans:
- Free plan: $0
- Base plan: $3 CPM
- Pro plan: $5 CPM
- Data w/storage rights plans:
- Base plan: $26 CPM
- Pro plan: $45 CPM
- Autosuggest and Spellcheck plans:
- Free plan: $0
- Pro plan: $0.50 CPM
4. Microsoft Copilot
Microsoft Copilot is an AI companion tool specifically meant to be paired with Microsoft 365 apps, such as Word, PowerPoint, and Excel.
It reminds me a lot of ChatSpot, HubSpot’s chatbot and AI Assistant, in that it is best used when paired with our own products.
Copilot seamlessly integrates into Microsoft 365 apps to help with the most appropriate tasks, from writing thought-starters in Word to design help in PowerPoint to email inbox efficiency in Outlook.
Copilot also has a web version that functions similarly to Perplexity. You enter a question, and it curates a response by scouring the web for references.
In my second search, Copilot included a lengthier response with a relevant video that auto-played at the bottom of the page.
What I Like
- Copilot is, first and foremost, a companion for Microsoft 365. I use Outlook every day, so the idea of an AI tool that is both a search engine and a match to my existing apps is exciting.
- The Copilot web interface is beautiful and inviting, with its sleek white background, colorful logo, and generated artwork.
- The sources are linked but don’t pull away my attention. I like that they appear as short URLs, and I can hover over the URLs to see the full article name.
- It didn’t overwhelm me with tons of images and videos but instead shared one relevant video to coincide with its text-based search results.
What Needs Improvement
- Compared to other search engines I tested, I didn’t think the search results for my second question were as thorough or informative.
- Being a search engine is not Copilot’s primary or best feature, so it can’t necessarily be as trusted as other tools on this list.
Pricing
- Web-only plan: Free
- Copilot for Microsoft 365 plan: $30/user/month
5. Komo
Komo is another AI search engine with a clean UI that pumps out detailed search results. It resembles Perplexity in its ease of use and reference to factual source information.
Komo has options to Ask, Search, Research, or Explore anything. Toggling to each of these four modes changes the format of your responses. I tested this out with my first question, searching it in all four modes.
For my second question, I tested it in “Ask” mode only.
What I Like
- Komo’s four search modes allow you to easily search any type of query. I like that the language in each version also differs. I preferred the concise language in “Ask” mode, but academics might prefer “Research” mode, for instance.
- Search results reference several sources, which shows the importance of fact-checking and knowledge to the search engine.
- The “Opinions” feature links to an endless stream of useful links, no matter how simple or complex the prompt may be.
- The “Learn More” feature lists follow-up questions to continue your search.
What Needs Improvement
- Searching in “Research” mode is very limited in the free version, with a strict once-daily limit. This mode is very unique to Komo and would be ideal if made more available to free users.
Pricing
- Free plan: $0
- Basic plan: $8/month
- Premium plan: $15/month
- Business plan: Contact the Komo team for pricing.
6. You.com
You.com, aptly named for how it can be personalized for how you best want to use it, is an AI search engine with four AI assistants and the ability to explore 16 AI models.
Clicking “More” above opens you up to the sheer number of assistants and models you can try out with You.com. You can see a snapshot of some of the AI models below.
Like Komo, you can search various queries in each AI assistant based on the prompt type. For instance, Smart Assistant is for any questions, Research Assistant is for topics requiring deep analyses and explorations, and Genius Assistant is for multi-step problems.
I used Smart Assistant to ask my first question since it’s simpler and more direct.
I used Research Assistant for my second question since it’s a bit more complex and can be explored more deeply.
What I Like
- You.com’s four AI Assistants are extremely intuitive and understand their specific search mode well. It makes perfect sense what kinds of questions, topics, and prompts to search in each of the four Assistants.
- This is the right option for any dedicated AI fanatics, as you can explore most industry-leading AI models in one place.
- The Research Assistant is my favorite feature. I love that You.com shows exactly where it’s searching for the information, which offers me more understanding and patience while waiting for my search results to load.
- I found my search results for “How do I become a better blog writer?” to be the most detailed and informative on this search engine.
What Needs Improvement
- It’s not as intuitive for new users. With so many modes, Assistants, and models, it may take some time to figure out your groove and your preferred searching methods.
- You only get three free premium queries per day, which includes any searches outside of Smart Assistant.
Pricing
- Free plan: $0
- YouPro plan: $20/month (or $15/month when billed annually)
- Organizations plan: Contact the You.com team for pricing.
7. Yep
SEO Tool Ahrefs launched Yep, an AI search engine that mimics the format of a standard search engine with a unique, funky look and coloring.
What sets Yep apart is that it shares 90% of its ad revenue with content creators in an effort to support high-quality content. Yep offers an unbiased, private search experience that encourages and financially supports the minds behind the content.
Outside of its positive mission, Yep looks and feels similar to Google when conducting searches. You can search any query and filter by All results, Images, or News.
You can also use the “Chat” feature on the top right-hand side if you’d prefer an AI-generated response.
I searched my second question to see how it fared on Yep.
What I Like
- Yep is the most like a traditional browser, but without any ads. I’m so used to scrolling through sponsored URLs on Google, that it’s refreshing to only receive links in order of how applicable they are to my question.
- You can toggle between search browser and chat to maximize the best of an AI search engine and chatbot in one tool.
- The UI is super easy to follow and learn, which is helpful for someone like me who isn’t always the most patient at learning a completely new version of a tool I already use daily.
- The bonus of Yep’s mission to support high-quality, authentic content makes you feel good about using it as your main AI search engine.
- If you like Yep, you can make it your default browser.
What Needs Improvement
- While I appreciate its simplicity, it could do with a few additional features to create a more well-rounded experience. It’s still in beta mode, so I expect more updates to come, but it’s not yet on par with other options on this list.
- It doesn’t have access to the breadth of information that Google or Bing (or even other search engines on this list) do, since I only received a handful of relevant URLs to both my questions. However, Yep is powered by two web crawlers (YepBot and AhrefsBot), so it has the potential to improve its knowledge base with time.
- The AI chat feature doesn’t cite its sources, which has been something I’ve come to expect based on other search engines on this list.
Pricing
- I couldn’t find information about pricing, which may indicate it only has a free plan (for now).
Where There’s A Will, There’s A(I) Way
As a marketer, I’ve realized the importance of practicing what I preach. I can’t promote a product if I don’t believe in its mission and use it — if applicable. After all, I do work for Nickelodeon and can’t say I consume kids’ television daily.
That’s why it’s important to believe in the efficiency and efficacy of the search engine you’re using, so you can best integrate it into your search engine marketing strategy.
I now see the value of AI search engines, especially Perplexity and You.com, and will absolutely incorporate these into my day-to-day as a user and marketer.
There’s no need to waste precious time explaining your queries and coaxing appropriate responses out of your browser. I was amazed by how easily I received answers to my two test questions on each of the above seven search engines when I usually would have needed to read a few articles to ensure correctness.
For those wary about AI’s impact on society, you can see how beneficial it can be for marketers and users in streamlining our work, weeding out the noise, and creating more meaningful, relevant experiences.
