AI startup Perplexity hits $18B valuation with NVIDIA's backing
AI startup Perplexity AI, founded in 2022, has landed $100 million in fresh funding from big names like NVIDIA and SoftBank. This boost pushes their valuation up to $18 billion.
Their revenue is growing fast too.
A new revenue model for publishers
Perplexity is shaking up how publishers get paid online. They've set aside a $42.5 million fund to share earnings with publishers based on how much their content is used through the Comet browser and assistant.
With Comet Plus (a $5/month subscription), 80% of that money goes back to creators whose content powers searches and AI tasks—a fresh approach compared to old-school traffic payments.
Browser wars and global expansion
By August 2025, Perplexity's AI browser Comet was available, blending search, automation, and generative AI tools all in one place.
They even made a bold bid for Google's Chrome browser ($34.5 billion!) as part of their strategy against tech giants.
Plus, thanks to a partnership with Bharti Airtel, they're bringing Perplexity Pro features to over 360 million users across India—seriously expanding their footprint worldwide.