Does firefox mobile offer ai answers with inline citations to sources like firefox desktop offers?

1. What Firefox desktop actually provides: cited AI answers in-browser

Mozilla has added Perplexity as an optional search provider in Firefox desktop that, when selected, presents conversational, generated answers together with citations instead of the traditional list-of-links results page ^{[1] [2] [3]}, and Mozilla positioned this as an opt-in choice rather than a forced replacement of classic search options ^{[4] [5]}.

2. Mobile support: announced, promised, but not yet the default reality in reporting

Multiple outlets covering the Perplexity integration make clear that the feature rolled out globally on desktop first and that Perplexity “will arrive on mobile devices in the months ahead” or that mobile support is “planned” or “expected” in the coming months, indicating a staged desktop-first rollout rather than an already-complete mobile implementation in the cited coverage ^{[1] [2] [3] [6]}.

3. Existing mobile AI features in Firefox are distinct from Perplexity’s cited answers

Mozilla’s public posts and product messaging describe other AI features already trialed or shipped — for example a desktop sidebar chatbot and an iOS “Shake to Summarize” feature — which demonstrate Firefox experimenting with local and sidebar AI tools, but these are framed as separate features and do not substitute for the Perplexity-in-browser, cited-answer search experience that was described as coming to mobile later ^{[4] [5]}.

4. Privacy, choice and the implications for mobile rollout

Mozilla’s stated approach is to offer choice — letting users opt into AI services and not be locked into a single ecosystem — and to emphasize privacy controls such as local generation for some features, which frames the Perplexity integration as an optional provider in Firefox rather than an imposed default; reporting notes Perplexity says it does not sell personal data, and Mozilla stresses user control over whether and how AI is used ^{[4] [7] [5]}.

5. Practical takeaway for users and what remains uncertain

For users seeking the exact desktop-style experience — conversational AI answers with inline citations inside the browser — the coverage shows that capability exists on desktop now but that mobile users should expect a forthcoming rollout rather than immediate parity; however, the reports do not provide a precise ship date, device-by-device availability, or details about whether mobile UI, citation formatting, or offline/local processing will match desktop exactly, so those remain open questions in the available coverage ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]}.

6. Alternative views and reasons to watch closely

Observers argue that embedding answer engines in browsers could change traffic flows and raise verification demands — citations help, but independent evaluations of model accuracy remain important ^[7] — and Mozilla’s marketplace-style, opt-in approach could lead to multiple AI providers appearing in Firefox over time, so mobile users should monitor both availability and third-party evaluations once Perplexity or other answer engines land on phones ^{[7] [6]}.