Perplexity Computer in Slack: Transforming Collaborative Workflows with AI

Perplexity Computer, an AI orchestrator that manages a team of AI agents on your behalf, has made significant strides since its inception. Initially developed as an internal tool at Perplexity, it quickly evolved into a powerful enterprise solution. The system codes in Claude Code and GPT Codex, performs deep research, orchestrates tools across 400+ connectors, creates files, and more-all on a secure server with reversible actions.

In the first two weeks of limited availability, Computer saved Perplexity Max subscribers over $91M, according to benchmarks compiled from McKinsey, Harvard, MIT, and BCG and Nielsen. Since then, it has performed over $776M in labor-equivalent work for Perplexity Enterprise, Pro, and Max subscribers.

The Early Days: ASI to Computer

The earliest version of Computer lived in a shared Slack channel at Perplexity. Initially dubbed ASI (a play on artificial superintelligence and “a Slack integration”), it allowed users to tag ASI and ask it to perform any task imaginable-pulling data from Snowflake, researching the web, preparing board memos, writing code, and more.

• Deep Research and Web Access: With deep research capabilities and web access, ASI quickly outgrew its initial name. It was renamed Computer to reflect its broader scope.
• Internal Adoption: In its first 4 weeks of existence, only as a Slack integration, Computer performed $1.6M of work for 300 Perplexity employees.

Collaboration in Context

One of the key strengths of Computer is how it keeps the request, context, and output together in Slack. This transparency fosters collaboration:

• Contextual Requests: Teammates can add details in the thread.
• Public Handoff: Project leads can hand off work publicly.
• Shared Review: Everyone can review results in the same shared workflow.

What Teams Use It For

In Slack, Computer can handle a wide range of tasks:

• Web Search and Research: Quickly find and analyze information from the web.
• Tool Integration: Work across connected tools without switching contexts.
• Content Generation: Generate reports, presentations, apps, and websites.
• Business Data Analysis: Analyze business data for insights.
• Recurring and Long-Term Workflows: Manage ongoing tasks efficiently.

For example, users can ask Computer to:

• “Review this partnership proposal, fact-check the statistics, flag risky terms, and return a marked-up Word document with suggested edits.”
• “Draft this quarter’s OKR kickoff deck using our strategy docs, prior results, and current backlog.”

Technical Details

• AI Agents: Manages a team of AI agents for various tasks.
• Programming Languages: Codes in Claude Code and GPT Codex.
• Connectors: Integrates with over 400 tools.
• Security: Operates on a secure server with reversible actions.

Conclusion

Perplexity Computer’s integration into Slack has revolutionized how teams collaborate and execute tasks. By keeping everything in one place, it enhances transparency, efficiency, and productivity. As the technology continues to evolve, its impact on collaborative workflows is likely to grow even further.