The Family History AI Show EP29: Perplexity's Comet Browser Revolutionizes Research, Grok 4 Released, Context is King, Google’s Video Generator Gets an Upgrade, ChatGPT Agent Launches
Co-hosts Mark Thompson and Steve Little explore Perplexity's groundbreaking Comet browser, which brings AI directly to web pages and can autonomously navigate sites to collect genealogical data.
They examine Grok 4's impressive benchmark performance while discussing its limitations for genealogical research and safety concerns.
This week's Tip of the Week introduces "context engineering" - the art of providing maximum information to AI tools through examples, documents, and prior conversations for superior results.
In RapidFire, they cover Google's Veo 3 photo-to-video tool, Silicon Valley's dramatic Windsurf acquisition battle, and OpenAI's new ChatGPT Agent that can control computers autonomously.
Timestamps:
In the News:
07:47 Perplexity's Comet Browser: AI-Enhanced Research and Web Surfing
20:32 Grok 4 Released: Benchmark Success, Real-World Challenges
Tip of the Week:
27:53 Context Engineering: Maximizing AI Results with Rich Information
RapidFire:
36:02 Google Veo 3: Transform Photos into Videos
44:19 Windsurf Acquisition Drama: AI Consolidation Begins
53:58 ChatGPT Agent: Autonomous Computer Control Arrives
Resource Links
Official Comet Launch Announcement
https://www.perplexity.ai/hub/blog/introducing-comet
Perplexity launches Comet, an AI-powered web browser
https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/09/perplexity-launches-comet-an-ai-powered-web-browser/
Every: Vibe Check: Grok 4 Aced Its Exams. The Real World Is a Different Story
https://every.to/vibe-check/vibe-check-grok-4-aced-its-exams-the-real-world-is-a-different-story
LM Arena Leaderboard
https://lmarena.ai/leaderboard
TechCrunch: Google adds image-to-video generation capability to Veo 3
https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/10/google-adds-image-to-video-generation-capability-to-veo-3/
Windsurf's CEO goes to Google; OpenAI's acquisition falls apart
https://techcrunch.com/2025/07/11/windsurfs-ceo-goes-to-google-openais-acquisition-falls-apart/
Every: Vibe Check: OpenAI Enters the Browser Wars With ChatGPT Agent
https://every.to/vibe-check/vibe-check-openai-enters-the-browser-wars-with-chatgpt-agent
TechCrunch: AWS is launching an AI agent marketplace next week with Anthropic as a partner