By Ademuyiwa Balikis
Artificial intelligence startup Perplexity AI has stunned the tech world with an unsolicited $34.5 billion all cash offer to acquire Google’s Chrome browser.
The proposal, sent directly to Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, comes despite the fact that Perplexity’s own valuation is nearly half that amount, $18 billion as of July 2025. The San Francisco based company said it has secured commitments from several unnamed investors to fully fund the deal.
Under the terms outlined in the bid, Perplexity pledged to keep Chromium, the open source project behind Chrome, freely available, retain the majority of Chrome’s employees, keep Google Search as the browser’s default search engine, and invest an additional $3 billion over two years to enhance the platform.
Industry analysts view the move as more than just a bold acquisition attempt. It comes amid heightened antitrust scrutiny of Google in the United States, where regulators have signaled that a breakup of certain business units, including the possible divestiture of Chrome could be on the table.
Founded in 2022, Perplexity has grown rapidly, positioning itself as a direct challenger to Google in the AI powered search space.
The company recently launched Comet, its own AI native web browser built on Chromium, and now serves around 30 million users. Its annualized revenue has surged from $35 million in mid 2024 to about $150 million in mid 2025.
The offer, if pursued, would mark one of the most audacious takeover attempts in Silicon Valley history, pitting a fast rising AI startup against one of the world’s largest and most entrenched tech giants.
