Nvidia eyes fresh investment in AI startup Perplexity ahead of earnings, valuation may cross USD 30 bn
New Delhi, August 25
Ahead of its earnings, chipmaker Nvidia is reportedly in talks to invest in Perplexity as part of a funding round that may push the AI startup's value to over USD 30 billion.
Nvidia is scheduled to announce its fiscal second-quarter results on August 26, with investors closely watching for updates on the company's AI investments and partnerships.
As per a report by TheStreet, citing The Information, people familiar with the matter noted the company is discussing an equity investment in Perplexity. Further, Reuters also reported the development; however, it could not independently verify the details, it noted.
"The startup's valuation sat at roughly $20 billion after a funding round finalized last year, meaning a $30 billion valuation would represent an increase of more than 50% in about 12 months," as per Investing.com, noted TheStreet.
Notably, this is not the first time Nvidia is investing in the AI search startup. The chipmaker has put money in Perplexity since 2023. Additionally, in July, Perplexity also committed to running its AI agent workloads on Nvidia's Vera CPUs.
According to The Information, Nvidia had previously considered licensing an arrangement with Perplexity or hiring some of its employees instead of making an equity investment. The discussions have since shifted towards a potential stake in the startup.
TheStreet noted that Perplexity already has prominent investors, including Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Japan's SoftBank Group, adding to the startup's profile as it seeks fresh funding.
Apart from this, the AI startup also has a healthy financial profile with annualised revenue surging over USD 750 million, up from less than USD 250 million at the start of the year -- a threefold jump in roughly eight months, according to Reuters.
"Part of that growth traces back to a specific product. Perplexity Computer, a cloud-based AI agent that professionals use to automate computer-based tasks, has been a meaningful driver of the recent revenue surge," TheStreet noted.
Meanwhile, "Analysts have remained broadly bullish heading into the report, regardless of the Perplexity news," TheStreet reported.
— ANI
Leave a comment