Whispers are swirling in Silicon Valley that Apple may have its eye on Perplexity AI.
According to people familiar with the matter, Adrian Perica, Apple’s point person for mergers and acquisitions, has kicked around the possibility with Eddy Cue and several top executives in the artificial intelligence space. The conversations are described as informal and preliminary, with no indication yet that Apple is poised to make a move.
If Apple were to pursue Perplexity, it could transform the company’s approach to search technology. The prospect comes at a sensitive time, as Apple’s longstanding partnership with Google to keep Google as the default search on its devices is facing potential risks due to ongoing antitrust litigation. Insiders suggest Apple is hedging its bets in case a court decision puts the brakes on its collaboration with Google.
Perplexity AI, meanwhile, has been making noise of its own. Its question-answering service pulls in the freshest information from the web and responds with timely insights right on the spot. The company recently announced it handles more than 780 million questions every month and that number climbs by over 20 percent with each passing month.
Rival Strategies and Apple’s Next Move
Apple’s approach to artificial intelligence has sparked plenty of debate among industry watchers. While competitors such as Microsoft and Amazon throw their weight behind expansive platform offerings and open developer tools, Apple remains focused on tightly woven consumer features like enhanced voicemail and advanced search, offering a curated experience rather than a sprawling ecosystem.
“We have no knowledge of any current or future M and A discussions involving Perplexity,” a spokesperson for the AI startup said. That brief response has done little to quell speculation about Apple’s intentions, especially as Perplexity’s rising profile makes it a tempting asset in the fast-changing landscape of search.
Some analysts wonder if Apple risks falling out of step with the rapid pace of generative AI evolution. Writing earlier this month, Apple reportedly mulling perplexity purchase described Apple’s approach as “restrained,” and suggested that the company could risk a “strategic drift” as others continue to innovate in the cloud.
For now, Apple remains quiet about the internal discussions. With the outcome of the Google antitrust trial still looming, any major acquisition is likely to wait until there is clarity about the future of default search on Apple devices, as noted in perplexity hits 780 million searches.
