Apple Considers Acquisition Of AI Perplexity Startup, Its Value Could Be A Record

JAKARTA - Apple is reportedly considering buying or partnering with rising artificial intelligence (AI) startup Perplexity, as part of a strategy to strengthen the search system and improve Siri's capabilities.

According to a Bloomberg report, two senior executives Apple Adrian Perica (Head of the Merger & Acquisition Division) and Eddy Cue (Head of Service) were directly involved in internal discussions on potential acquisitions or collaborations with Perplexity. Although there has been no official offer, this conversation is said to be still in its early stages.

Apple is said to be considering two options: buying directly Perplexity or making strategic partnerships. If you choose a second option, Perplexity is likely to be integrated into the Safari browser and Siri's long-delayed upgrade project, and is only expected to be released in 2026.

This partnership could also be a way for Apple to create its own AI-based search engine an important step given the pressure from regulators regarding Google's dominance as the main search engine on the iPhone and Mac. Google itself is known to pay Apple around 20 billion US dollars per year to remain the default option, and this deal is now under the spotlight in antitrust cases.

If Apple decides to buy Perplexity, the acquisition value will set a record high in the company's history, surpassing Beats' acquisition of US$3 billion (Rp49.1 trillion) in 2014. Currently, Perplexity is expected to have a valuation of around US$14 billion (Rp229.3 trillion).

Perplexity is known as one of the fast-growing AI companies and competes in the natural-language-based search realm with a ChatGPT-like approach, but focuses more on real-source-based answers.

Apple Needs AI Partner Diversification

This move is not too surprising for industry observers. In a recent Google antitrust hearing, Eddy Cue himself admitted that Apple had spoken to Perplexity and claimed to be 'Impressed by what they had achieved.'

Apart from Perplexity, Apple was previously also reportedly in contact with OpenAI, Google, Meta, and Anthropic in an effort to develop a strong and diverse AI ecosystem.

Seeing this pattern, many argue that Apple is now treating AI partners like hardware component suppliers utilizing many partners at once for the sake of flexibility, cost efficiency, and technology diversification. This strategy is considered to be able to give users more choices while keeping Apple's bargaining position strong.

For now, there has been no official confirmation from Apple or Perplexity. But if this acquisition does happen, Apple may soon take a serious step into the realm of a smarter and personal AI-based digital search engine and assistant.