Perplexity Lobs $34.5bn Shock Bid for Google Chrome as Antitrust Clouds Gather

AI start-up Perplexity has made a surprise $34.5bn (£25.6bn) offer to acquire Google Chrome, the world’s most-used web browser—an audacious move that has split Silicon Valley watchers between “serious strategy” and “headline stunt.” The three-year-old company, backed by Jeff Bezos and Nvidia and led by ex-Google/OpenAI alum Aravind Srinivas, framed the bid as a pledge to the open web, user choice, and continuity for Chrome’s ~3bn users.

Skeptics pounced. One tech investor called the proposal “a stunt” that undervalues Chrome; venture capitalist Tomasz Tunguz suggested Chrome could be “ten times” pricier. Judith MacKenzie of Downing Fund Managers praised the boldness but noted the bid is unsolicited and unfunded, while investor Heath Ahrens argued it’s “nowhere near” Chrome’s true value—though he mused a far larger offer from a heavyweight could reshape AI dominance.

The timing is combustible. A U.S. federal judge may soon rule on remedies in a landmark antitrust case against Google, potentially forcing structural changes to its search business. Google has signaled it would appeal any breakup order and says spinning off Chrome is an “unprecedented proposal” that would harm consumers and security.

Perplexity, valued around $18bn in July, did not detail financing. The company recently launched Comet, an AI-powered browser, and has pitched keeping Google as the default search inside Chrome post-deal (users could change settings). It also pledged continued support for Chromium, the open-source engine behind Chrome, Edge, and Opera.

But Perplexity carries baggage. Media outlets have accused it of reproducing content without permission; the firm denies wrongdoing and has fired back rhetorically, further polarizing sentiment around its scrappy, growth-at-all-costs posture.

Whether the bid is a negotiating gambit, a regulatory provocation, or a genuine moon-shot, it thrusts the browser—long treated as plumbing—back into the center of the AI race. For now, all eyes are on the court docket and Google’s boardroom: if Chrome ever came into play, the price—and the politics—would likely escalate fast.