Perplexity vs debate
Perplexity is an MCP server published by perplexityai. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Docker MCP Catalog). debate is a plugin bundle for AI coding tools published by agent-sh. Marketplaces we read that list it: 1 (Claude Code: claude-plugins-community). As of our marketplace pass on 2026-10-13. This pair was picked by a reader, not by our comparison rule, so search engines are asked not to index the page.
Where each is published
| Marketplace |   Perplexity |  debate |
|---|---|---|
| Docker MCP Catalog | Listed Version: sha256:7816f45a6f26 Forks (GitHub): 380 Pulls (Docker Hub): 79 864 Stars (Docker Hub): 17 Stars (GitHub): 2 562 Not marked · First seen |
Not listed |
| Claude Code: claude-plugins-community | Not listed | Listed Version: 5.1.0 Forks (GitHub): 0 Stars (GitHub): 4 Not marked · First seen |
Each figure is the marketplace's own and is never added up across marketplaces. A marketplace that publishes no figure shows none: no number is not zero.
The facts side by side
| Fact | Perplexity | debate |
|---|---|---|
| Marketplaces that list it | 1 | 1 |
| Stars (GitHub) (differs) | 2 562 (better) | 4 (worse) |
| Pulls (Docker Hub) (differs) | 79 864 | No figure on Docker Hub |
| Forks (GitHub) (differs) | 380 (better) | 0 (worse) |
| Last release | Not published | Not published |
| Where it runs (differs) | On your machine (mcp/perplexity-ask) | Installs as a plugin bundle |
| Transport (differs) | stdio | Not stated |
| Tools it declares (differs) | 3 | Not published |
| Environment variables it asks for (differs) | 1, secrets among them: 1 | Not published |
| Parts of the bundle (differs) | Not a bundle | 3 |
| Licence | MIT | MIT |
| Repository (differs) | github.com/ppl-ai/modelcontextprotocol | github.com/agent-sh/debate |
| Changes in the last 7 days | 0 | 0 |
| First seen | 2026-10-11 | 2026-10-11 |
Lines where the two differ have a tinted background and bold values. Where the data itself says which value is better (more marketplaces, a larger figure of the same marketplace, a fresher release, a verified mark on a marketplace that lists both), the better one is also marked green with ▲ and the worse one red with ▼. Where it runs, the transport, the tools, the settings, hooks, the bundle's parts, the licence and the week's changes are marked only as different: more or fewer is not better in itself.
What each says it does
Perplexity
Connector for Perplexity API, to enable real-time, web-wide research.
debate
Structured multi-round debate between AI tools with proposer / challenger roles and a final verdict. `/debate` orchestrates a back-and-forth between two AI CLIs (Gemini, Codex, Claude Code, OpenCode, Copilot, Kiro) on a design decision, technical question, or contested approach. Each round, one tool proposes / defends and the other challenges; the orchestrator synthesizes the disagreement and renders a verdict with reasoning. Surfaces blind spots that single-tool consultation misses, especially on architectural decisions where two strong arguments exist. Programmatic entry point — other agents and workflows can spawn a debate via Task to break a tie.
How to run each
Perplexity As a local MCP server: Docker image
claude mcp add --env "PERPLEXITY_API_KEY=<YOUR_PERPLEXITY_API_KEY>" --transport stdio perplexity-ask -- docker run -i --rm -e PERPLEXITY_API_KEY mcp/perplexity-askRequires: PERPLEXITY_API_KEY (secret)
debate As a Claude Code plugin
/plugin marketplace add anthropics/claude-plugins-community
/plugin install debate@claude-communityCommands built only from what the marketplaces declare; the full set for every client is on each card.
Tools each declares
The marketplaces of debate publish no list of tools, so we do not compare tools.
Settings each asks for
The marketplaces of debate publish no settings it asks for, so we do not compare settings.
What it can do: Perplexity · What it can do: debate · Compare two other plugins
Data comes from the Docker MCP Catalog (desktop.docker.com/mcp/catalog) and Docker Hub. Data comes from the public marketplace file https://github.com/anthropics/claude-plugins-community/blob/HEAD/.claude-plugin/marketplace.json. Figures come from our own regular passes over the marketplaces, last read on . We publish no contact details for plugin publishers.