Telco partnership opens AI-powered search to the masses
Millions of Australians will be offered unlimited access to an AI-powered search engine in a move that could spark fresh competition among artificial intelligence platforms.
Optus launched the deal with US firm Perplexity on Monday, becoming the first local telecommunications provider to package premium AI subscriptions with its plans.
The move mirrors deals in other countries but also comes after the Business Council of Australia called for action to boost the development of AI regulation, support and training to turn the nation into a global AI leader by 2028.
Optus will give small business and individual customers access to Perplexity Pro for 12 months under the deal, which chief customer officer Anthony Shiner said could boost the number of Australians using the technology.
"AI take-up in Australia is quite low," he told AAP.
"Knowing that AI, in some parts of the world, is being offered free to all citizens ... the time is right here in Australia for us to partner with a high-quality product and start the journey of revolution that we think AI will bring into everyday lives."
More than half of Australians have used generative AI services (54 per cent), according to a survey by Deloitte Insights, but its reach is significantly higher in the Asia Pacific region (67 per cent).
Rather than offer a chatbot service like OpenAI's ChatGPT or Google's Gemini, Perplexity will deliver a web search engine that can tap into other AI models for answers.
Users will be able to ask the service complex queries with follow-up questions, Perplexity business vice-president Ryan Foutty said, or set it tasks such as creating a travel itinerary or coding a basic game.
Search results appear alongside their sources of information, he said, but were not presented with advertisements and links, offering users a different type of online experience.
"People want a simple, easy-to-use experience that's not cluttered like traditional search has been but also is not influenced by who is willing to pay the most amount of money to get in front of you," he said.
"We're excited about Australia because historically we've seen Australia be very early to adopt new technology."
Perplexity AI launched a similar deal through a partnership with Optus' parent company Singtel in Singapore and with German provider Deutsche Telekom in January.
Rival AI provider Google has offered subscriptions to its Gemini chatbot through Samsung and its own smartphones in the past, while Apple teamed with OpenAI to incorporate ChatGPT into its AI platform.
Optus' announcement comes after the Business Council of Australia called for the nation to seize the opportunity presented by artificial intelligence technology and introduce support, training and regulations to encourage its use.
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