Perplexity offers $34.5bn for Google’s Chrome in bid to challenge search dominance

Artificial intelligence start-up Perplexity has made an audacious $34.5 billion offer to buy Google’s Chrome browser, positioning itself as a willing acquirer should a US court order its sale to curb Google’s grip on the search market.

The proposal, disclosed to The Wall Street Journal, comes as US District Judge Amit Mehta weighs remedies after ruling last year that Google illegally monopolised search. Mehta is expected to decide this month whether to force structural changes, including the possible divestiture of Chrome, which has 3.5bn users and controls over 60 per cent of the global browser market.

Offer well above Perplexity’s own valuation

San Francisco-based Perplexity, valued at about $18bn, said large venture capital funds had agreed to fully finance the deal. The offer falls within analysts’ estimates of Chrome’s enterprise value, which range between $20bn and $50bn.

In a letter to Google chief executive Sundar Pichai, Perplexity said the bid was “designed to satisfy an antitrust remedy in highest public interest by placing Chrome with a capable, independent operator.” It added it would continue to maintain Chromium, the open-source platform underpinning Chrome, and keep Google as the default search engine, though users could change settings.

Google resists forced sale

Pichai has argued that selling Chrome or sharing user data would harm Google’s business, undermine investment in new technology and create security risks. During testimony earlier this year, he said such measures could weaken the browser’s development.

The Justice Department’s 2020 antitrust lawsuit against Google has also raised other potential remedies, including limits on default search deals with device makers and requirements to share data with rivals. Google has proposed less sweeping changes, such as modifying its exclusive agreements with Apple, Mozilla and Android partners.

A signal to the court

Analysts suggest Perplexity’s offer may be intended to show Judge Mehta there is a credible buyer for Chrome, strengthening the case for a divestiture. While legal experts say a forced sale remains unlikely, Mehta has described it as potentially “cleaner and more elegant” than behavioural remedies.

Founded in 2022, Perplexity recently launched its own browser, Comet, to a subset of users. The company is already entangled in legal disputes with two subsidiaries of News Corp, which have sued over alleged copyright infringement.

The ruling, expected within weeks, could shape the future of both the search and browser markets— and determine whether Perplexity’s multibillion-dollar offer ever moves beyond the proposal stage.