Perplexity, an AI search startup that doesn’t crack 100 million monthly users, has made a $34.5 billion cash offer to buy Chrome from Google.
An unsolicited bid will be made as Google has prepared its remedy decision after it has maintained its search monopoly illegal. The timing makes sense, but the questions remain. Confusion does not name its supporters for large transactions, and the offer is far more valuable than the company has raised.
The move has gained a lot of buzz in high-tech circles, but has driven a wider distribution of Perplexity after struggling to recruit mainstream users. The company also considered obtaining a Brave Browser and launched its own AI-powered browser browser. Whether this chrome play is serious or just a stunt is still debate.
Equity revisits a conversation with NeilChilson, a lawyer, computer scientist and director of AI policy at a wealth of labs, to unpack what is at stake in the fight for Google’s search and ad technology, and how AI is generated can rebuild competition in space.
As always, Equity will be back for you next week, so don’t miss it!
Equity is TechCrunch’s flagship podcast produced by Teresa Loconsolo, posted every Wednesday and Friday.
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