Perplexity AI, the artificial intelligence startup, has made an unsolicited offer of $34.5 billion to acquire Google's Chrome browser. This bold move comes as Google faces increasing regulatory pressure and antitrust scrutiny. The US Department of Justice has even proposed that Google divest Chrome after a court ruling that the tech giant held an illegal monopoly in online search.
Perplexity AI's all-cash bid is nearly double its own valuation, which was recently estimated at $18 billion. The company has secured backing from several large venture capital funds who have agreed to finance the deal. Perplexity has raised approximately $1 billion from investors, including SoftBank and Nvidia.
The AI startup, founded in 2022, is headed by CEO Aravind Srinivas. Perplexity AI has gained recognition for its AI-powered search engine that delivers conversational answers with citations. In line with this, Perplexity recently launched its own web browser, Comet, which is built on Chromium, the same open-source software that powers Chrome. Comet incorporates Perplexity's AI features, setting web search as the default and providing an AI assistant to automate browsing actions.
Perplexity's proposal includes maintaining Chrome's open-source Chromium code, investing $3 billion over two years, and keeping Google as the default search engine. Srinivas stated that the acquisition is designed to satisfy an antitrust remedy by placing Chrome in the hands of "a capable, independent operator". The company emphasized that the offer, which contains no equity component, would preserve user choice and ease future competition concerns.
If the deal were to go through, Perplexity would gain access to Chrome's over three billion users, giving it a significant advantage in the AI search race. Rowan Stone, the CEO of AI training firm Sapien, believes that owning Chrome would give Perplexity "web-scale behavioral data" to train its search engine and a "built-in runway to drive mass adoption of its AI-driven search experience". Stone added that Perplexity could integrate new monetization models and AI systems directly into the core browsing experience, giving it a competitive edge.
However, analysts believe that Google is unlikely to sell Chrome, considering its strategic value in the company's AI initiatives. Chrome provides Google with a massive data advantage that influences various aspects, including ad targeting and search engine results page features. DuckDuckGo CEO Gabriel Weinberg has suggested that Chrome could be worth at least $50 billion, which is significantly higher than Perplexity's offer. Some analysts view Perplexity's bid as a PR stunt to attract attention and influence the ongoing antitrust proceedings. Baird Equity Research analysts suggest that Perplexity might be trying to encourage other companies to bid or influence the judge's pending decision in the antitrust case.
This is not the first time Perplexity AI has made a bold move to acquire a major asset. In January 2025, the company offered to merge with TikTok US to address concerns about TikTok's Chinese ownership.
