PayPal is handing its users—and Venmo customers—early access to Comet, Perplexity’s new AI-powered web browser, along with a complimentary year of Perplexity Pro. The move folds a buzzy AI product into two of the most widely used finance apps in the U.S., turning a coveted invite into a mainstream perk and signaling how payment platforms plan to plug directly into the next wave of AI-driven browsing and search.
What the offer includes
The promotion bundles two pieces: a Comet invite and a free 12-month Perplexity Pro subscription (typically $200 annually). Access is surfaced inside the PayPal and Venmo apps, and each PayPal account receives one invite. Existing Perplexity Pro subscribers aren’t eligible.
Comet pairs a traditional browser with an integrated AI assistant that summarizes search results, compares products, and keeps context across tabs. It also leans into “agentic commerce,” where the assistant can help you discover items, book travel, or buy tickets—then check out with PayPal or Venmo in just a few taps. Early access previously flowed first to Perplexity’s top-tier Max plan, which costs $200 per month, making this PayPal route a notable shortcut.
Why this partnership matters
Distribution is the headline. PayPal counts hundreds of millions of active accounts globally, and Venmo reaches tens of millions of U.S. users, according to company disclosures. That scale can compress an AI product’s go-to-market cycle from months into days. With one in-app placement, Comet jumps from a waitlist novelty to a mass-consumer trial—exactly the kind of push AI upstarts need as the category crowds with new agents and browsers.
There’s also a flywheel at work for PayPal. By dangling exclusive AI perks, the company can drive logins and spotlight its new subscriptions hub, a dashboard for managing recurring charges across services. PayPal is pairing the hub with a separate promotion that pays out $50 when customers link and pay at least three subscriptions via its platform—a nudge that could increase stickiness and payment volume.
The AI browser race heats up
AI-enhanced browsers are vying to loosen Chrome’s grip on desktop usage. Chrome commands roughly two-thirds of global share by StatCounter estimates, a formidable moat for any challenger. Still, the category is shifting: Arc, Opera (with Aria), Brave (with Leo), and Microsoft’s Edge (with Copilot) are weaving assistants into everyday navigation. Perplexity’s angle is to collapse “search” and “browse” into one conversational layer, then tie it to actions—comparison shopping, itinerary planning, and checkout—without constant context switching.
If Comet proves that an AI-first interface can save meaningful time per task, even single-digit percentage gains in user efficiency could translate into a large share of daily browsing sessions. That’s the strategic prize: become the starting point for intent and the broker of what happens next.
How to claim through PayPal and Venmo
Open the PayPal or Venmo app and look for the Comet and Perplexity Pro offer card. Follow the prompts to activate the 12-month Pro trial and receive your Comet invite. The benefit is limited to one invite per PayPal account, and current Perplexity Pro members don’t qualify. After activation, Perplexity provides instructions to download and install the Comet browser. The rollout is U.S.-only for now, with broader availability planned.
What to watch next
Key metrics will be conversion and retention: how many PayPal and Venmo users try Comet, and how many keep Perplexity Pro after the free year. On PayPal’s side, expect scrutiny on subscriptions hub adoption, repeat app engagement, and whether the $50 incentive moves measurable subscription management activity into its ecosystem.
Consumers should check auto-renew settings and understand what data flows where: PayPal and Venmo handle payments, while Perplexity and Comet process browsing and assistant interactions. Both companies publish policies on data retention and model training—worth a read before toggling always-on AI features.
The bigger picture is clear: payments and AI are converging at the browser level. By pairing an invite-only AI experience with everyday checkout rails, PayPal and Perplexity are testing a powerful distribution formula—one that could make the browser not just where the internet begins, but where purchases complete.
