AI search engine Perplexity has made an unsolicited cash offer of 34.5 billion dollars to acquire Chrome from Google, according to sources, with the company confirming the move.
Perplexity stated that its proposal includes keeping Chrome’s underlying engine, Chromium, as an open-source project and investing an additional 3 billion dollars into its development. The company also pledged not to alter user defaults, including keeping Google as the default search engine rather than replacing it with its own AI-powered search.
Google has not yet commented on the offer.
This bid follows a proposal from the Department of Justice earlier this year that Google be required to sell Chrome after a court ruled the tech giant had acted illegally to maintain its dominance in online search. Google has opposed the decision and plans to challenge it. The court is expected to set potential remedy terms later this month.
Google is also facing another federal antitrust case over alleged illegal monopolisation of its advertising technology business, with the DOJ recommending that Google be forced to sell two of its adtech products or restructure the business.
When the DOJ first suggested a Chrome divestment, both OpenAI and Perplexity expressed interest in acquiring the browser. Chrome currently holds about 68 per cent of the global browser market, making it a highly sought-after asset if a sale is mandated.
In April, the chief executive of rival search engine DuckDuckGo testified that Chrome could be valued “upwards of 50 billion dollars.” If Perplexity’s bid succeeds, it may be considered a bargain.
However, the offer far exceeds Perplexity’s current valuation and the total amount it has raised from investors, which is estimated at around 1.5 billion dollars. The company was most recently valued at 18 billion dollars after a funding extension of 100 million dollars last month.
Perplexity recently launched its own browser, Comet, as part of its strategy to expand its AI search business without relying on browsers owned by competitors. Last month, the company also reportedly made a bid to merge with TikTok.
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