Aravind Srinivas: The visionary behind Perplexity AI’s $34.5bn bid to acquire Google Chrome

In a move that has sent shockwaves through the global tech industry, AI startup Perplexity, led by Indian-origin CEO Aravind Srinivas, has made an unsolicited $34.5 billion all-cash bid to acquire Google Chrome, the world’s most-used web browser.

The offer, first reported by 'The Wall Street Journal', comes at a time when tech giants face increasing regulatory scrutiny following a recent U.S. court ruling that found the tech giant guilty of maintaining an illegal monopoly in web search.

Industry analysts estimate Chrome's valuation between $20 and $50 billion, placing Perplexity’s bid within a serious and calculated range.

Founded in 2022, Perplexity has rapidly emerged as a serious contender in the AI space, offering a conversational search engine that delivers real-time, cited answers. The startup has raised over $1 billion from leading investors including Nvidia and SoftBank, and was last valued at $14 billion. Despite this, the company says it has secured commitments from several unnamed investment funds to fully finance the proposed deal.

The bold offer comes at a time when Google is under mounting regulatory pressure. The U.S. Department of Justice recently won a court ruling against the tech giant, declaring its dominance in online search an unlawful monopoly. One of the proposed remedies under consideration includes forcing Google to divest its Chrome business. Google has said it will appeal and has not indicated any intent to sell Chrome.

Perplexity’s proposal outlines a $3 billion investment into Chrome over two years and includes a pledge to keep Chrome’s open-source Chromium engine intact. The company also promises to maintain existing default search engine settings, framing the offer as one that “preserves user choice” while addressing antitrust concerns.

Industry Interest Grows in Chrome
Perplexity is not the only company eyeing Chrome’s vast reach — which includes over 3 billion users worldwide. Rivals such as OpenAI, Yahoo, and Apollo Global Management have also expressed interest, while DuckDuckGo’s CEO recently valued Chrome at no less than $50 billion in the event of a forced sale.

The potential acquisition would provide Perplexity a direct path into the mainstream browser market, significantly amplifying its reach and ability to compete with AI search giants. The company recently launched its own AI-powered browser, Comet, and views Chrome as a natural extension of its long-term strategy.

The Rise of Aravind Srinivas
At the centre of this bold bid is Aravind Srinivas, a 30-year-old entrepreneur from Chennai, India, who has become one of Silicon Valley’s most watched young leaders. A graduate of IIT Madras in electrical engineering, Srinivas later worked at Google, interned at DeepMind, and conducted research under AI pioneer Yoshua Bengio. He also spent time at OpenAI, contributing to the development of cutting-edge machine learning systems.

Under Srinivas’s leadership, Perplexity has expanded aggressively. In May 2025, the company partnered with Bharti Airtel, offering 360 million users in India free access to its premium product, Perplexity Pro.

Srinivas’s interest in AI began during his undergraduate years, where a love for cricket statistics evolved into a passion for machine learning. He gained early recognition by winning a global Kaggle data science competition, setting the stage for his future in AI entrepreneurship.

A History of Bold Moves
This is not Perplexity’s first high-stakes offer. In January, the startup made headlines by proposing a merger with TikTok US, aiming to resolve U.S. national security concerns over Chinese ownership. While that deal did not progress, it signaled the company’s willingness to make strategic, headline-grabbing plays to accelerate growth.

Despite scepticism in the industry about whether Google would consider parting with a core product like Chrome — which plays a key role in its AI strategy — Perplexity remains firm. The company says its bid is structured to meet regulatory expectations while delivering value to Chrome’s massive user base.