AI startup Perplexity has made an offer to acquire Google Chrome for $34.5 billion. The aim of this initiative is to weaken Google’s dominance in the internet search market, especially in light of the ongoing antitrust case in the U.S.
This is reported by Business • Media
Context of the Antitrust Case and Funding for the Deal
Perplexity stated that the offer amount significantly exceeds its own valuation, which is around $18 billion. The company claims that several influential venture capital firms have already agreed to fully finance the potential deal. Estimates of the market value of the Chrome browser vary among experts, ranging from $20 billion to $50 billion. Google representatives have refrained from commenting on this offer.
The initiative comes amid proceedings in a U.S. federal court, where Judge Amit Mehta is deciding whether Google should be forced to sell Chrome to limit its monopolistic influence in the search services market. Last year, the court found that Google illegally monopolized this segment, and a decision on possible actions is expected as early as August.
Perplexity’s Plans for Chrome and Market Reaction
In a letter to Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, Perplexity stated that its offer aims to meet antitrust requirements and transfer Chrome to an independent operator in the public interest.
“Its proposal is intended to satisfy antitrust requirements in the best interests of the public by transferring Chrome to a capable and independent operator.”
According to media reports, Google emphasizes that a forced sale or transfer of data to competitors could potentially harm its business, reduce investments in cutting-edge technologies, and create risks for user security. Currently, Chrome is the most popular browser in the world, with about 3.5 billion users, and its share of the global market exceeds 60%.
Perplexity also promised that if the acquisition goes through, it would continue to support the open-source Chromium project on which Chrome is based, as well as keep Google as the default search engine with the option to change it.
Analysts consider it unlikely that the court will decide on a forced sale of Chrome. However, during the hearings, Judge Mehta noted that such a step could be a “somewhat cleaner and more sophisticated” way to enhance competition in the industry.
Earlier, there were also reports of OpenAI’s interest in potentially acquiring Chrome to expand its own position in the internet search market.