In a surprising twist, AI startup Perplexity has publicly announced its own ambitious plan to buy TikTok’s US operations. The company has argued in a recent blog post that it is “singularly positioned to rebuild the TikTok algorithm without creating a monopoly.” This isn’t the first time that Perplexity has been intrigued by generative AI. In January, the company offered a similar settlement before the original divestiture deadline of January 19, 2025. The inaugural deadline for bids is currently April 5th.
Perplexity’s $18 Billion Bid for TikTok
Perplexity’s bid is valued at $18 billion, which is notably lower than the valuation of TikTok’s US operations, estimated by Bloomberg analysts to be up to $50 billion. Still, Perplexity is bullish on its chances of raising the round at an $18 billion valuation. The ambitious startup wants to replace TikTok as we know it by open-sourcing the ‘For You’ feed and applying its citation-extending service to TikTok videos.
“Making it easy for users to cross-reference information in real time as they watch videos.” – Perplexity
And the competition to TikTok isn’t just from TikTok’s rivals. There are deep-pocketed contenders angling for acquisition as well. A group led by Frank McCourt has proposed transitioning TikTok onto a blockchain, while Oracle and other investors have previously expressed interest in acquiring a majority stake in the company.
Perplexity’s ambitions don’t stop at search and acquisition. To do that, the startup intends to combine its answer engine with TikTok’s new video library to produce an unmatched multimedia search experience.
“Combining Perplexity’s answer engine with TikTok’s extensive video library would allow us to build the best search experience in the world, providing both TikTok and Perplexity users access to the answers they seek, anywhere, anytime, no matter the medium.” – Perplexity
Beyond economics, the company’s strategy speaks to a larger cause of freeing content feeds from outside interference.
“All of society benefits when content feeds are liberated from the manipulations of foreign governments and globalist monopolists.” – Perplexity
What The Author Thinks
Perplexity’s vision to open-source TikTok’s ‘For You’ feed could set a new precedent in the social media landscape. The company’s goal to combine multimedia search with video content could revolutionize how users interact with and consume information. However, given the complexities of such a massive acquisition, Perplexity will need to address challenges in securing regulatory approval and building a robust, scalable platform capable of handling the user base of TikTok.
Featured image credit: PYMNTS
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