Aravind Srinivas, co-founder and CEO of Perplexity AI, has rapidly transformed his startup into a formidable challenger to established tech giants, achieving an $18 billion valuation in under three years.
Drawing inspiration from his mother’s unfulfilled dream of attending IIT, Srinivas channeled that ambition into building a company that is revolutionizing how people search for and interact with information.
Founded in 2022, Perplexity AI offers an AI-driven search engine that provides direct, cited responses to user queries, setting itself apart from traditional search engines. The company’s rapid growth is underscored by its launch of Comet, an AI-powered browser designed to integrate AI directly into the browsing experience, enabling users to perform complex tasks seamlessly within the browser.
Under Srinivas’s leadership, Perplexity AI has secured significant funding from major investors and announced partnerships aimed at expanding its AI applications into hardware, including collaboration with telecom companies to develop AI-integrated smartphones.
Srinivas’s journey from academic disappointment to leading innovation showcases a shift toward pioneering scalable and accessible artificial intelligence, maintaining the company’s independence amid the dominance of major AI corporations.
As Perplexity AI continues to grow, Srinivas’s vision challenges established norms of digital search and positions the company as a significant player in the AI landscape.
