By now, I've realized there's no escaping AI. The only way forward is to embrace it and begin incorporating it into your workflow. Though AI chatbots and different productivity tools have been around for quite a bit now, something we're only now seeing is AI-powered assistants being baked directly into browsers.

The first browser of this sort that I went hands-on with is Opera's upcoming Neon browser, which I got early access to. What makes these browsers stand out is that they can actually do tasks for you in real time. So, for example, I've been asking Neon to order my daily coffee for me while I catch up on my email or simply do a few chores.

Ever since I tried Opera Neon, I've been curious to see how other browsers would approach this idea. In July, Perplexity, the AI company, launched its AI-powered browser, Comet. Before I even got the chance to test Comet (since I was stuck on the waitlist), Microsoft announced its own take on Comet and Opera Neon — Copilot Mode in Edge. I finally got around to playing with both Comet and Copilot Mode in Edge, and it didn’t take long to realize that Microsoft’s new Edge Copilot mode beats Perplexity at its own game.

So, what exactly are Comet and Copilot Mode?

Essentially the new way to browse smarter

Comet is Perplexity's AI-powered Chromium-based browser that essentially blends web browsing with real-time AI assistance. Copilot Mode, on the other hand, isn't really a separate browser. Instead, it's a new AI feature within Microsoft Edge that's designed to give you a similar AI-in-your-browser experience without switching to an entirely new browser.

Perplexity’s Comet is currently available only to Perplexity Max subscribers or those lucky enough to get off the waitlist, while Copilot Mode is rolling out to all Edge users, no subscription required. On the surface, both Comet and Copilot Mode promise the same thing: built-in AI assistant that can help you browse smarter and skip the constant tab-switching.

Copilot mode feels like a natural extension of Edge

And Comet doesn't feel as polished yet

As much as I love testing out new tech apps and finding better replacements, I'm not the biggest fan of needing to overhaul my entire setup, especially for something as crucial as my browser. Setting up Perplexity's Comet was extremely straightforward. I'm not kidding — it took less than a minute. All my extensions, bookmarks, and settings carried over instantly, so it felt familiar right from the start. But despite how seamless setting it up was, the issue came once I actually started using it.

For instance, with any browser, you’re typically used to typing a query into the address bar and getting search results from Google (or whatever search engine you’ve set as default). With Comet, Perplexity is the default. That means every time you type something in, it opens a new Perplexity thread and tries to find an AI-generated answer for you. Now, I use Perplexity a lot for studying, and I reach for the website often myself, but not every query I have needs to be answered by an AI chatbot.

For example, I work Eastern Standard Time hours but I live nine hours ahead. If I type “EST to PKT” into another browser, I instantly get the time conversion at the top of Google’s results, no extra clicks, no waiting. In Comet, that same query spins up a new Perplexity thread, which then takes a few seconds to generate an answer I could’ve gotten in less than one. There is an option to search Google instead of Perplexity, but you need to manually select it each time or switch it to as your default (which I don't want to) And honestly, there have been plenty of times when I've just hit Enter out of muscle memory, only to realize a few seconds later that I didn’t actually want an AI-generated answer.

Copilot Mode, on the other hand, doesn’t replace your default search flow. Instead, it works alongside it. You can keep using Google (or whatever search engine you prefer) for quick lookups, and Copilot only steps in when you actively open its sidebar or trigger it with a prompt. That means you’re in full control of when AI enters the picture, which I’m a big fan of.

Copilot mode gives you free access to GPT-5

A more powerful model, at no added fee

OpenAI launched its newest and "smartest, fastest, and most useful model yet"this week, GPT-5. And though the model is available for free for ChatGPT users too, strangely enough, Comet locks it behind its Pro and Max subscriptions. In fact, you need to be a paying member just to switch between different AI models in Comet.

For free users, Perplexity automatically selects the model for you, so you don’t have any control over which one you’re using. On the other hand, there’s a new Smart mode in Copilot now that uses GPT-5 to deliver the “smartest, most intuitive experience yet,” according to Microsoft. When GPT-5 dropped, I was excited to set it as my default in Comet, only to realize I needed to upgrade to a paid plan just to do that.

You can use Copilot mode in Edge for free right now

Do you want to spend $200 just to try Comet?

When it came to using AI to compare the tabs you currently have open, both Comet and Copilot Mode in Microsoft Edge go neck and neck. They both do the job just as well. But one major difference between the two at the time of writing is that Copilot Mode in Edge is completely free to use. Though Microsoft mentioned that it's only free for a limited time, you can still give it a shot and try it for free right now.

To even use Comet, on the other hand, you need to be either a Pro Max subscriber, which retails for $200 per month, or get on the waitlist. But even then, given that you need to pay a hefty price tag just to try Comet out, you can kind of tell how limited the browser will get as time passes.

Besides, as impressive as I found Comet during my testing, I don’t personally think I’d ever pay $200 for it. If I want to use Perplexity, I can just head to their website and get the same AI experience without the extra cost or hassle.

Comet is impressive, but Copilot Mode is clearly the winner

After spending hours playing around with the two and pitting them against each other, it’s clear that while Comet offers some unique features, Copilot Mode delivers a smoother, more integrated experience. The fact that Copilot is built right into Edge means you don’t have to switch browsers or pay extra to access powerful AI tools.