Perplexity AI, the San Francisco-based startup taking aim at Google’s dominance in search, has secured a $200 million funding round, pushing its valuation to $20 billion, according to multiple reports. The announcement comes just two months after Perplexity’s valuation jumped to $18 billion in a $100 million round, bringing its total funding to roughly $1.5 billion. The latest capital infusion highlights growing investor confidence in the company’s ambitious efforts to reshape how people search for information online.
Founded in 2022, Perplexity has rapidly gained traction by merging real-time web search with conversational, source-attributed responses—a format designed to deliver more trustworthy, context-rich answers than traditional search engines. The platform now serves over 30 million active users, processes more than 780 million queries per month, and has seen its annual recurring revenue rise to nearly $200 million, up from $150 million just a month earlier.
One of Perplexity’s most audacious moves this year was its $34.5 billion bid for Google Chrome—widely interpreted as a strategic statement rather than a serious acquisition attempt, particularly after Google secured a legal win that preserved its search and browser market dominance. In addition, Perplexity is piloting Comet, its AI-powered browser available exclusively to Perplexity Max subscribers, aimed at integrating assistants for search, automation, and multitasking—signaling a broader vision to reinvent the browsing experience.
Led by co-founder and CEO Aravind Srinivas, the company is focused on scaling its AI infrastructure, deepening publisher partnerships through revenue-sharing programs, and continuing its rapid international expansion. In a market dominated by players like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google, Perplexity’s fresh funding underscores investor belief in its differentiated approach to the future of search.
As competition intensifies, Perplexity’s growth trajectory suggests it is positioning itself not just as a search alternative but as a reimagined entry point to the internet—one that blends real-time data, conversation, and personalization to create a next-generation search experience.
