Three sites made 215,128 “best software” pages for AI. Perplexity cites them
3 September 2026 · filed under 164af9b86142
A report circulated on Hacker News states that three websites produced a combined 215,128 pages of “best software” recommendations, and that Perplexity cites these pages in its results.
The report, published under the title “Three sites made 215,128 ‘best software’ pages for AI. Perplexity cites them,” is available at trellner.com. No further detail on the sites’ identities, the pages’ content, or the methodology behind the count has been supplied to this desk.
The scale of the figure, over two hundred thousand pages attributed to three sources, is notable on its face. Whether these pages were produced through automated means, template generation, or other methods is not specified in the available material. Likewise, the report does not, per the material provided, explain how or why Perplexity’s citation practices came to include pages from these three sites, nor does it characterize Perplexity’s broader sourcing methods.
The matter has drawn attention for what it may suggest about the composition of material that large-scale information systems draw upon when generating recommendations to users. The available material does not elaborate further on the implications, and no additional documentation, statements from the parties named, or responses from Perplexity have been provided to this desk at this time.
The Specola will report further should additional material become available.