Perplexity’s AI-Powered 'Email Assistant' Wants to Turn Inbox Chaos To Inbox Zero

Large language models (LLMs), the driving force behind today’s AI boom, have ignited a global race.

Since OpenAI launched ChatGPT, the LLM race has exploded into an arms race among tech giants and ambitious startups. From Google with Gemini, Microsoft with Copilot, Anthropic with Claude and many more, each player is trying to carve out a unique angle.

Perplexity, though, has stood out by positioning itself not just as another chatbot but as an AI-driven search and productivity company.

From the beginning, it framed its mission around replacing the search experience itself with direct, context-rich answers, and more recently, by embedding AI agents directly into the tools people use daily.

This time, the company shows just how serious it is about transforming workplace automation, unveiling what it calls the 'Email Assistant.'

This feature, available exclusively to Max subscribers, is designed to manage inboxes in Gmail and Outlook, handle the endless back-and-forth of scheduling meetings, and draft replies that mimic the user’s own communication style. In other words, it aims to take on one of the most time-consuming parts of modern work: email.

Users can invite the assistant into a thread, and from there it can propose meeting times, coordinate calendars, and send invites automatically.

It also categorizes messages, labels them for priority, and generates summaries so that “inbox zero” feels less like a fantasy. Even more intriguingly, it learns the tone and style of the person it’s assisting, meaning replies read less like a generic bot and more like the user themselves.

"Simply put, a powerful and personal AI assistant helps you get a lot more done," said Perplexity in a blog post.

This launch is part of a larger industry trend, where AI agents evolving from simple chatbots into autonomous digital workers.

Perplexity isn’t alone, OpenAI, for example, has Operator, Google is embedding AI directly into Gmail and Chrome, and Microsoft continues rolling out Copilot.

But Perplexity’s play feels sharper and riskier.

"The most successful workers and thinkers hire personal assistants for their email instead of relying on AI tools and algorithms that handle rote tasks. There’s too much at stake. Perplexity's Email Assistant is more than a tool, and available to anyone," added Perplexity.

But that "anyone" is only those who are willing to pay for a Max subscription, which is $200 billed per month.

The response has been mixed.

By locking its Email Assistant behind the $200 Max subscription, it’s making a bold bet that enterprise users will see the value in trading steep fees for measurable productivity gains.

After all, the tool is aimed less at casual users and more at executives, recruiters, and administrative staff who can save hours a day through automation.

Some users applaud the company for treating AI as a premium service rather than a data-harvesting freebie. Others, especially existing Pro subscribers, feel alienated by the Max-only restriction, with many voicing frustration online.

Still, the pricing lines up with Perplexity’s recent $20 billion valuation and $200 million funding round. It's a clear sign that the company wants to prove its AI isn’t just novel but indispensable.

Of course, this comes with familiar challenges.

Giving an AI assistant full access to calendars, contacts, and inboxes raises inevitable privacy and security questions. Perplexity has promised enterprise-grade encryption, GDPR and SOC-2 compliance, and assured users that their emails will never be used for model training. But for many, trusting an AI with sensitive communications will take more than promises.

Early reviewers note that while the assistant is adept at routine tasks like scheduling and drafting, it still stumbles on complex, multi-step processes, an echo of broader limitations in current AI.

Misbooked dates and occasional “hallucinated” details remain a risk, which is why human oversight is still essential for critical exchanges.

Still, Perplexity’s Email Assistant signals more than just another feature.

It represents the company’s clearest attempt yet to wedge itself into the daily workflow of knowledge workers.

If it delivers, email could become the beachhead through which Perplexity challenges the dominance of Google and Microsoft in productivity software. And if it fails, it will serve as a reminder that while AI can draft an email in seconds, winning trust, and enterprise dollars, takes far longer.