https://x.com/davelalande/status/2097439623324561500?s=20
https://x.com/davelalande/status/2097439623324561500?s=20
https://x.com/GeniusGTX/status/2097158510018760754?s=20
A man at a San Francisco barbershop told Aravind Srinivas he had just lost three hours shopping for a washing machine.
On a recent podcast, the Perplexity CEO gave 8 reasons that is the problem he is solving:
1. Billionaires never lose those hours
Srinivas points out that wealthy people already have this solved, because assistants and staff handle it for them.
Everyone else books their own appointments, hunts for doctors their insurance covers, and compares flights themselves.
2. A second brain, not a memory store
He calls Comet a second brain and immediately rejects what people assume that means.
Not a dump of saved data, but something that thinks alongside you and takes the work your first brain finds dull.
3. Curiosity is not the boring part
Preparing to interview someone means reading every past episode, sorting transcripts and drafting fresh questions.
Srinivas says the asking is the enjoyable half. The tab opening and the sorting is what should be handed over.
4. Three things people actually did
- Had Comet file a FedEx complaint for him
- Ran a Facebook ad campaign for a small business
- Identified spam senders and unsubscribed from them
5. Software built for everyone fits nobody
Most software you use was never designed around you, and no developer will build a feature for a single user.
His argument is that an agent sits between the general product and the version that actually suits you.
6. The sleeping flight rebooking
One example he gives is Comet noticing your flight got cheaper overnight, cancelling and rebooking while you sleep.
He is straight about it not existing yet. Running on a server with your laptop shut is what they are building.
7. Removing time, not saving it
He frames the goal as removing hours you never enjoyed rather than making you more productive with them.
He is untroubled if the time goes to browsing or family, because people do their best work when they are not worn down.
8. There is no operating system for life
An operating system runs processes and manages memory, and Srinivas says your life needs exactly that.
Windows and Mac run your applications, but the orchestration between them is still entirely on you.
His framing is that this is not giving up agency.
It is handing over the annoying parts so the interesting ones get your attention.
Worth noting the interview is about a year old, and the background features were promised by the end of that year.
TL;DR
1. Wealthy people already have this problem solved
2. A second brain thinks, it does not just store
3. Asking questions is fun, gathering context is not
4. People use it for support calls, ads and spam
5. Generic software never fits one specific person
6. Overnight flight rebooking is a plan, not a feature
7. The goal is removing time you never enjoyed
8. Nothing orchestrates your life across applications
I appreciate you making it to the end.
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