Here's the Real Reason Perplexity AI Just Offered to Buy Chrome — But Will Google Sell or Ignore the $34.5B Offer?

The tech community is in pandemonium — and the ripple effect is caused by a single and bold action.

AI startup Perplexity has put an unsolicited, cash-only bid of $34.5 billion (£25.41 billion) on Google's Chrome browser.

This is not only a commercial transaction; it's an explicit challenge to Google's control of the internet, a strategic wager in that broader antitrust battle, and arguably the highest-profile power play that the browser market has ever witnessed. The question now is this: will Google relinquish one of its gems-- or take this as an offer that it can do without?

A Price Tag that Will Turn Heads

In an unexpected manoeuvre, Perplexity has proposed paying $34.5 billion (£25.41 billion) all-cash offer — nearly double its own estimated valuation of $18 billion (£13.26 billion) as of last month — to acquire Chrome.

The company says multiple investors have already pledged to finance the deal entirely. Under CEO Aravind Srinivas, Perplexity has promised to keep Chrome's underlying Chromium engine open-source and to invest approximately $3 billion (£2.21 billion) in ongoing browser development.

To pre-empt competition concerns, Perplexity has also committed to retaining Google as Chrome's default search engine, rather than replacing it with its AI-powered search technology. This pledge would preserve the current user experience while easing regulatory scrutiny.

The Antitrust Backdrop

Perplexity's action was not unforeseen. In 2024, following a historic antitrust judgment against Google, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) suggested that the company may need to be compelled to sell Chrome.

DOJ claimed that the browser is a 'critical search access point', which would secure Google's monopoly and suppress competition. Its Initial Proposed Final Judgment put it bluntly: 'To remedy these harms, the [Initial Proposed Final Judgment] requires Google to divest Chrome.'

Google responded quickly and aggressively, referring to the proposal as 'wildly overbroad' and the DOJ as having 'a radical interventionist agenda'.

To that, add that it has long been rumoured, and not refuted by the involved parties, that Google pays Apple upwards of $15 billion (£11.05 billion) per year to remain the default search engine across all Apple devices.

Why Chrome Is A Strategic Prize For Perplexity

The bid lands at a time when the generative AI race is intensifying. Heavyweights such as Meta and OpenAI are spending tens of billions annually on infrastructure and talent to secure their place at the top.

For Perplexity, being an owner of Chrome would provide unprecedented exposure to international users and an endless stream of internet traffic — a head-to-head advantage in AI research as well as consumer reach. It would immediately join the browser big leagues and pit its head-to-head against Google's highest-grossing business: search.

Will Google Even Look At The Offer?

Notwithstanding all the headlines, none of which even remotely suggest that Google would be interested in selling Chrome, it is and continues to be a core foundation of its ecosystem, firmly integrated with its ad and search infrastructure.

Although Perplexity's bid is designed to be attractive to regulators and capture public interest, Google is already challenging the antitrust decision and would likely view this bid as more of a public relations move than a genuine acquisition attempt.

For now, the decision — and perhaps a slice of internet history — sits with Google. Will mounting regulatory pressure and a headline-grabbing $34.5 billion offer trigger a sale that reshapes the browser market, or will the tech giant wave it away and dig in for a prolonged legal battle?