E68: Jeff Grimes of Perplexity on the New AI-Native Analyst

Sasha Orloff and Jeff Grimes, Perplexity’s Product Lead for Finance, explore the evolution of search from a simple "answer engine" to a high-stakes "action engine." They discuss the disruption of legacy platforms like the Bloomberg Terminal and how Perplexity is building an AI-native operating system designed specifically for the rigors of financial analysis. The conversation tackles the industry's skepticism toward AI accuracy, detailing the "auditability-first" approach that allows finance teams to verify every data point back to its original SEC filing, effectively turning complex technical workflows into plain-English commands.

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SPONSORS:

Notion

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RECOMMENDED IN THIS EPISODE:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffgrimes9/

https://www.perplexity.ai/finance

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X/SOCIAL:

@jeffgrimes9 (Jeff)

@sashaorloff (Sasha)

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TIMESTAMPS:

(00:00) Preview

(00:50) Intro

(02:28) Why it went viral

(06:50) Comet and agentic browsing

(08:57) WSJ controversy breakdown

(10:40) What versus How

(12:52) Google innovators dilemma

(14:33) Sponsors: Notion | Puzzle

(16:13) Perplexity finance users

(18:24) Off the shelf data deals

(22:37) Future of finance workflows

(26:19) Workflows and automation

(27:05) Proactive assistants

(28:28) Trust in finance

(31:31) Audit trails by design

(34:20) Getting started with computer

(36:16) Multi model orchestration

(37:47) Wild user stories

(39:48) Domain specific finance

(41:40) Where to learn more

(42:28) Wrap