On Tuesday, two AI startups tried convincing the world their AI chatbots have been ok to be an correct, real-time supply of data throughout a high-stakes presidential election: xAI and Perplexity.
Elon Musk’s Grok failed nearly immediately, providing incorrect solutions about races’ outcomes earlier than the polls had even closed.
Alternatively, Perplexity provided useful, real-time election insights and maps all through the night time, linking to dependable assets and providing historic context the place acceptable.
Perplexity took a dangerous guess, and it paid off.
Late final week, the startup introduced the launch of its election data hub, that includes real-time maps populated with voting knowledge from Democracy Works and the Related Press, the identical data sources that energy Google’s election map. This strategy was completely different from most different AI chatbots, resembling OpenAI’s ChatGPT or Google’s Gemini, which merely refused to reply questions associated to the election.
It’s comprehensible why most AI labs sat this election out. It was the secure and accountable selection for a lot of of them, as they’ve been affected by embarrassing hallucinations sooner or later or one other within the final 12 months.
Specifically, OpenAI not too long ago launched its Google competitor, ChatGPT Search. However the Sam Altman-led startup didn’t belief the characteristic to reply questions on this election, directing customers to Vote.org as an alternative. ChatGPT Search continues to be an early product, which is too unreliable for individuals to make use of in on a regular basis eventualities, and OpenAI appears to have acknowledged that.
In distinction, Perplexity has been testing its Google competitor out in the true world since December 2022 and clearly felt it had sufficient knowledge to provide this election a shot.
Perplexity’s election night time success may set it again in its ongoing battle with media firms; particularly, Dow Jones’ latest lawsuit claiming the startup competes with media firms for a similar audiences. Regardless of the various outbound hyperlinks throughout the AI chatbot’s solutions, Perplexity’s election hub was itself a vacation spot on election night time, and it didn’t require customers to enterprise off the app to get all their data. It actually looks like Perplexity was competing with media firms, who have been additionally vying for eyeballs on election night time, though Perplexity collects its data from these shops. Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas even claimed “record traffic” the day earlier than and clearly hoped to keep up that momentum.
Whereas Perplexity had offers with Democracy Works, the AP, and some different media firms to energy election options, the startup additionally indiscriminately used dwell election protection from different media shops resembling CBS, CNN, and the BBC. Certain, Perplexity provided attribution, however the firm hasn’t introduced any revenue-sharing partnerships with these shops and it’s unclear if any cash modified palms.
How Perplexity fared on Election Evening
First, let’s begin with Perplexity’s election options that had nothing to do with generative AI: the charts.
Folks usually love visible election charts, clicking into them and seeing granular knowledge on a state-by-state stage. It was a sensible transfer for Perplexity to construct these out and ensured their AI techniques weren’t the only supply of data within the app.
When visiting Perplexity’s election hub, customers have been met with a familiar-looking electoral map of the US, with some states blue for Kamala Harris and others crimson for Donald Trump. Clearly, Perplexity didn’t reinvent the wheel with this characteristic — copying the show Google and each TV community exhibits — however they didn’t have to. All through the night time, this map appeared to replace each minute or so, reflecting the knowledge on the Related Press’ web site. It was a great way to observe the election.
There have been bugs in Perplexity’s map periodically all through the night time. Srinivas responded to customers on X that have been reporting flaws, resembling Perplexity not reporting the proportion of votes that had been counted, and shortly addressed them.
Perplexity provided one other acquainted characteristic, a state-by-state tracker, giving real-time details about swing states.
Now for the AI half. When requested questions in regards to the present state of the Presidential race, Perplexity answered with hedged responses that also gave largely correct data. These solutions weren’t as insightful as a commentator on CNN, nor as entertaining as The New York Occasions’ election needle (which made a comeback this 12 months). Nonetheless, Perplexity solely confirmed just a few small hallucinations, and largely produced related details in a well timed method. That’s greater than I can say for every other AI chatbot in the marketplace.
When making an attempt to reply follow-up questions on Harris’s lead in so-called “Blue Wall” states, Perplexity did hallucinate barely. It was referencing polling knowledge, when it ought to have been referencing real-time votes at this level within the night time. Nonetheless, the final data right here was in the precise ballpark, and different AI chatbots simply wouldn’t reply this query.
Right here’s one other followup query we tried: What ballots have but to be counted in swing states? It was onerous to search out a solution to this query elsewhere. Granted, the one helpful solutions right here have been for Pennsylvania and North Carolina, however no less than Perplexity didn’t hallucinate for the opposite states.
2024 was the primary election to characteristic AI chatbots as a supply of data round our democratic processes. Nonetheless, this is not going to be the final election the place that’s the case. Effectively-funded AI startups are combating to ship data to individuals in new, quicker, extra concise methods. Accuracy shall be key to success right here transferring ahead. Up to now, Perplexity has the early lead.
