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Perplexity wants to replace Google
Analysis: How much do AI researchers earn?
Jack Shields
January 05, 2024
Happy Friday!
Microsoft is making the first major keyboard change in 30 years, hoping to make 2024 the year of the “AI PC.” We’ll also take a look at top AI researcher salaries and Perplexity’s ambitions to upend traditional search engines.
Let’s go.
In today’s Daily Update:
🗞️ Microsoft introduces Copilot key for Windows keyboards
🤖 How much are AI researchers earning?
📸 Perplexity aims to replace internet search engines
🚨 AI Roundup: Four quick hits
Read time: 2 minutes
TOP STORY
🗞️ Microsoft introduces Copilot key for Windows keyboards
Source: Microsoft
Yesterday Microsoft announced a new Copilot key that will integrate AI into the hardware of Windows 11 PCs.
The details:
The Copilot key will allow users to interact with Microsoft’s AI assistant at the click of a button.
Microsoft hopes the key will enable Windows users to leverage AI in everyday tasks more easily.
The updated keyboard will roll out to new Windows 11 devices (including Microsoft Surface devices) starting in February.
The relevance: It feels like we’ve been talking about on-device AI every week for the last few months. With the Copilot key, Microsoft is going a step further by integrating AI into the hardware of new devices. Given current industry trends, it won’t be long before every device you use is enhanced with AI capabilities.
INDUSTRY ANALYSIS
🤖 How much are AI researchers earning?
Source: Rora
Rora’s 2023 Salary Negotiation Report for AI Researchers reveals that top AI/ML researchers are earning close to seven figures a year.
Crunching the numbers:
OpenAI tops the highest-paying company list with $865k in final annual compensation.
Researchers at Google Brain, Amazon, Tesla, Inflection and Anthropic earn $695k to $855k annually.
Apple and Microsoft are further down the totem pole, but still offer around $450k per year.
The bottom line: As AI companies race to build industry-leading models, they are also competing for top research talent. Now is a great time to be an AI researcher.
BUSINESS SPOTLIGHT
📸 Perplexity aims to replace internet search engines
Screenshot: Perplexity
Perplexity hopes to challenge Google’s dominance in web search with its “answer engine.”
Key points:
Perplexity’s answer engine uses AI to provide direct answers (instead of website links) to search queries.
The product is used by roughly 10 million people monthly. It peaked at 53 million visits in November.
Jeff Bezos and other tech executives just invested $74 million in the company, raising its total valuation to $520 million.
Perplexity currently isn’t profitable and makes $5 million to $10 million in annual revenue.
Why it matters: Perplexity won’t replace Google overnight, but its answer engine could set a precedent for future versions of leading search engines. Although Google and Bing already run pretty seamlessly, advances in AI could make finding information online even easier.
MORE TRENDING NEWS
🚨 AI Roundup: Four quick hits
Generated by Adobe Firefly
ChatGPT Store: OpenAI will open its GPT Store next week, where users can sell customized AI agents built on ChatGPT.
DocLLM: JPMorgan releases an AI model designed to understand complex business documents.
Raw Deal: OpenAI’s licensing deals with news publishers reportedly top out at $5 million a year.
Smarter Software: Intel launches a new enterprise-focused AI company called Articul8 AI.
THAT’S ALL FOR TODAY