- Perplexity AI has made a $34.5B unsolicited bid for Chrome, amid DOJ pressure for Google to divest.
- Chrome’s 3B+ users make it critical for Google’s search, ads, and AI-driven future.
- Analysts question feasibility; some see Chrome’s true value at $50B–$300B.
- Google calls divestiture “wildly overbroad” and is expected to fight any ruling.
- Even if unsuccessful, the bid elevates Perplexity’s profile in the AI race.
An audacious offer ties into mounting regulatory pressure on Google to divest Chrome.
Artificial intelligence startup Perplexity AI has made an unsolicited $34.5 billion offer to acquire Google’s Chrome browser, placing one of the internet’s most widely used gateways at the center of both antitrust litigation and the escalating AI race. The move comes after the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) proposed that Google divest Chrome as part of remedies following last year’s landmark antitrust ruling that found the company held an unlawful monopoly in online search.
Chrome, launched in 2008 and now used by an estimated three billion people worldwide, is a linchpin of Google’s ecosystem, providing both user data and advertising leverage. For Perplexity, securing Chrome would represent an unprecedented leap in reach and relevance, allowing the young AI firm to position itself against search incumbents while embedding its AI-native approach into one of the world’s most powerful digital entry points.
Perplexity’s Motivations and Financing Questions
The bid, confirmed by multiple outlets, is striking not only for its size but also for the imbalance between Perplexity’s current valuation—roughly $18 billion as of July—and the $34.5 billion it is offering.
According to a company spokesperson, in talks with the BBC, venture investors have indicated willingness to back the deal.
“Our bid marks an important commitment to the open web, user choice, and continuity for everyone who has chosen Chrome,”
Perplexity has been expanding aggressively, recently launching its own AI-powered browser, Comet, and making earlier overtures to acquire TikTok’s U.S. operations. CEO Aravind Srinivas, a former Google and OpenAI employee, has consistently framed the company as a challenger to entrenched tech incumbents.
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Regulatory and Legal Landscape
The DOJ has been explicit about why Chrome matters in its antitrust case. In filings, the agency wrote that forcing divestiture “will permanently stop Google’s control of this critical search access point and allow rival search engines the ability to access the browser that for many users is a gateway to the internet.”
Google, for its part, has pushed back strongly, calling the proposal “wildly overbroad” and “a radical interventionist agenda” that would harm consumers and undermine security.
Analysts note that any forced separation could take years, given the likely appeals that would follow a divestiture ruling. University of Pennsylvania law professor Herbert Hovenkamp noted,
“It’s very possible that [Judge Mehta] would hold off on requiring a sale until the appeals process is worked out, and that could be a very lengthy period of time.”
Industry Reaction and Market Value Debate
The offer has drawn skepticism across the tech and investment community. One technology investor described the bid as “a stunt, and nowhere near Chrome’s true value, given its unmatched data and reach.” Others suggested Chrome could be worth at least $50 billion, with some estimates running several times higher.
Tomasz Tunguz of Theory Ventures argued that Chrome is “maybe ten times more valuable than the bid or more,” underscoring the gap between Perplexity’s proposal and market expectations.
At the same time, the bid has sparked discussions about what it signals for the AI sector. Browsers, long taken for granted as utilities, are increasingly viewed as strategic assets in the AI era, serving as direct pipelines for user data and interaction that underpin search and recommendation models.
Implications for Google and the AI Landscape
For Google, losing Chrome would represent a seismic shift. Chrome not only funnels billions of queries into its search business but also supports Google’s AI-driven pivot, including its rollout of AI-generated search summaries. Handing control to a rival would erode its integration of advertising, search, and AI innovation.
For Perplexity, however, even a failed bid may have strategic upside. By placing itself at the center of the antitrust debate, the company reinforces its positioning as a defender of the “open web” and elevates its visibility against much larger rivals such as OpenAI and Meta. The move also signals to investors that Perplexity is willing to challenge incumbents head-on to secure market relevance.
Chrome’s Fate Could Reshape Search and AI Competition
Whether feasible or not, Perplexity’s $34.5 billion bid for Chrome underscores the browser’s central role in both regulatory scrutiny and the future of AI-enabled search. It also illustrates how aggressively AI startups are attempting to reshape the balance of power in digital markets.
Even if Google never parts with Chrome, the episode raises the stakes in ongoing antitrust battles and highlights the browser’s strategic weight as the internet’s most contested gateway.
