In a bold move that has sent ripples through the tech industry, AI startup Perplexity has made an unsolicited, all-cash offer of $34.5 billion to acquire Google’s Chrome web browser. The bid comes at a critical time for Google, as the company faces a potential court-ordered divestiture of Chrome following a U.S. antitrust ruling.
According to reports, Perplexity’s offer is nearly double its own $18 billion valuation. The proposal is designed to address a potential remedy in the ongoing antitrust case, which found that Google holds an illegal monopoly in online search. The U.S. Department of Justice has previously suggested that forcing Google to sell Chrome would be a primary way to restore competition. Perplexity’s bid includes commitments to keep the underlying Chromium code open-source, invest $3 billion into the browser over two years, and maintain Google as the default search engine, while allowing users the option to change it.
While Perplexity has reportedly secured financing from multiple large venture capital funds to back the deal, analysts view the acquisition as a long shot. Google has shown no interest in selling the browser and is in the process of appealing the antitrust ruling. The offer, however, strategically positions Perplexity as a major player in the AI search wars and highlights the growing importance of controlling a browser as a gateway to user data and search traffic. Other companies, including OpenAI and Yahoo, have also reportedly expressed interest in acquiring Chrome should a forced sale occur.