Why does Perplexity AI want to buy Google Chrome for $34.5 Billion?

Artificial intelligence startup Perplexity threw a curveball on Tuesday (12th August 2025) when it announced an unsolicited $34.5 billion offer to buy Google's Chrome, the world's most popular web browser. Chrome reaches more than 3 billion users and holds a 68% browser market share, making it a powerful on-ramp for search and ads.

Perplexity’s audacious bid has put an $18 billion startup against a trillion-dollar titan as a U.S. court weighs remedies that could force Google to divest Chrome. Let’s break down Perplexity’s offer, and see whether it is real or just another PR stunt?

What Perplexity is Offering for Chrome?

Perplexity says outside funds would finance the deal. It pledges to keep Chromium open-source, invest $3 billion over two years, and leave Google as the default search engine in Chrome. A Perplexity spokesperson confirmed the company would invest "$3 billion over the next two years in Chrome and Chromium" and retain a "substantial portion" of its talent. Note that Alphabet has not indicated that Chrome is for sale.

Perplexity's Bid vs. Google Chrome’s Market Valuations

Source: Bloomberg, CNBC and BBC

Perplexity’s Audacious Offer in an Antitrust Shadow

Perplexity's bid comes as the tech world awaits a ruling from US District Judge Amit Mehta on remedies for Google's illegal search monopoly. The US Department of Justice has already proposed a "radical" solution: forcing Google to divest Chrome to break its stranglehold on the search market. Perplexity is positioning itself as a ready-made buyer, arguing that an independent Chrome would foster "user choice and continuity." In a letter to Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, the company said the move would benefit the public.

Perplexity AI’s bid for Chrome: A PR Stunt or Serious Play?

Despite the assurances, Perplexity’s proposal was immediately met with skepticism, primarily due to the financials. Perplexity's $34.5 billion offer is dwarfed by expert estimates of Chrome's value. Tomasz Tunguz of Theory Ventures told the BBC the browser is likely "ten times more valuable than the bid or more." This valuation gap led investor Heath Ahrens to label the move a "stunt, and nowhere near Chrome's true value, given its unmatched data and reach."

Furthermore, questions remain about Perplexity's ability to fund the deal. Perplexity was valued at around $18 billion in July 2025. While the company's chief business officer, Dmitry Shevelenko, told Bloomberg that "multiple large investment funds have agreed to finance the transaction in full," no investors have been publicly named. Some analysts caution that Chrome could fetch far more, with estimates at $50B or even higher.

Why does Perplexity want to Google Chrome?

Chrome is the default path where a large chunk of searches begin. In court, the DOJ framed Chrome as a “critical access point,” and trial coverage captured the government’s estimate that roughly a third of Google queries flow through Chrome. If you control that on-ramp, you control which assistant shows up in the address bar, the new tab page, and the side panel. For Perplexity, owning Chrome means instant, system-level distribution for an AI agent without having to win users one by one.

Google spends heavily to be the default in other people’s browsers and devices. In 2021 it paid $26.3B to secure defaults across partners (Reuters). Bloomberg reported $20B payment to Apple in 2022 for Safari alone.. Those are distribution taxes that an AI search rival cannot easily match. If Perplexity owns Chrome, it replaces paid defaults with owned distribution, a structural advantage over rivals that must keep buying access.

Source: Reuters, Bloomberg, WSJ, Company Filings, DoJ, The Verge

A Pattern of Bold Moves From Perplexity

This is not the first time Perplexity has made headlines with an ambitious acquisition target. Earlier this year, the company submitted a proposal to merge with the US operations of TikTok, another platform facing a potential forced sale by its foreign owner. That deal has yet to materialize. The latest bid for Chrome could be seen as less of a straightforward acquisition attempt and more of a high-profile maneuver to elevate Perplexity's brand.

A Checkmate Attempt by Perplexity AI Before the Game is Set?

Whether a genuine buyout attempt or a calculated PR gambit, Perplexity's bid for Chrome accomplishes one thing with certainty: it pushes the company into the center of conversation about the future of the web browsers and AI. The offer's fate ultimately rests on two unknowns: whether the US judicial system will force Google's hand, and whether Perplexity's anonymous backers have the capital and conviction to follow through.

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