Perplexity offers US$34.5b to buy Google Chrome browser
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The news: Artificial-intelligence startup Perplexity on Tuesday (Wednesday AEST) offered to purchase Google’s Chrome browser for USD34.5 billion as it works to challenge the tech giant’s web-search dominance.
Multiple large investment funds had agreed to finance the transaction in full, Dmitry Shevelenko, chief business officer of San Francisco-based Perplexity – itself valued at about USD18 billion – told Bloomberg.
The numbers: Recent estimates of Chrome’s enterprise value have ranged from USD20 billion to USD50 billion, The Wall Street Journal noted.
In a letter Perplexity sent to Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google parent Alphabet, reported by the WSJ, the startup said it would maintain and support Chromium, the open-source project that supports Chrome and other browsers, and continue placing Google as the default search engine within Chrome, though users could change settings.
Perplexity’s bid also pledges to invest USD3 billion over two years in Chrome and Chromium, and make no changes to Chrome’s default search engine, according to a term sheet seen by Reuters.
The context: The move comes after the US District Judge Amit Mehta, last year ruled that Google illegally monopolised the search market. He is expected to rule this month on remedies that could include forcing the company to sell Chrome.
Google has opposed selling Chrome, with CEO Sundar Pichai testifying that forcing a sale or requiring it to share data with rivals would harm its business, deter investment in new technology and create security risks. The company has said it plans to appeal the ruling.
OpenAI, Yahoo and Apollo Global Management have also reportedly expressed interest in buying Chrome.
What they said: In the letter to Pichai, Perplexity said its offer to buy Chrome is “designed to satisfy an antitrust remedy in highest public interest by placing Chrome with a capable, independent operator.”
A Perplexity spokesperson told Bloomberg the company would not make any “stealth modifications” to Chrome, adding: “This is part of our commitment to continuity and choice for users, and will likely be seen as having the benefit of stability for Google and its many advertisers.”
Perplexity also said it would “extend offers to a substantial portion of Chrome talent,” and that its offer to Google did not include any equity in Perplexity to avoid any antitrust concerns, according to Bloomberg.
The sources: The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, Reuters
