Perplexity AI files to merge with TikTok US

Artificial intelligence firm Perplexity officially joined TikTok on Saturday, filing with its parent company ByteDance to create a new combined entity that would bring together Perplexity, TikTok US and new equity partners, CNBC has learned.

According to a source familiar with the situation, who asked not to be named because of the confidential nature of the potential deal, the new structure will allow most of ByteDance’s existing investors to retain their stakes and bring more videos to Perplexity.

The surprise of A.I artificial intelligence a search engine startup that competes with OpenAI and GoogleThe year 2024 began with approx 500 million dollars assessments and finished the year with an assessment about 9 billion dollarsafter attracting increasing investor interest amid the generative artificial intelligence boom – too controversy surrounding allegations of plagiarism.

AI-powered search is seen by investors as one of the Google major risks as it potentially changes the way consumers access information online. Last year, OpenAI, which kicked off the generative AI craze with ChatGPT in late 2022, introduced search engine called SearchGPT. Google later launched “AI reviews” in search, allowing users to see a short summary of the answers at the top of the results.

Although any potential transaction between Perplexity AI and ByteDance would likely take months — and TikTok said the app will go “dark” in the US on Sunday unless the Biden administration assures it won’t punish an appleGoogle and other service providers to host it — the president-elect Donald Trump told NBC News on Saturday that he would “likely” give TikTok another 90 days to work out a deal after he is sworn in on Monday.

In a video posted on TikTok on Friday, Shaw CEO Ji Chu said, “I want to thank President Trump for his commitment to working with us to find a solution that will allow TikTok to remain available in the United States.”

ByteDance publicly announced this will not sell TikTok US, which is part of why Perplexity AI believes it has the ability to complete its bid — as the offer is more of a merger than a sale, a source told CNBC.

The source believes the fair price is “well up to $50 billion,” but the final figure attached to the offer will be determined in part by which of ByteDance’s existing shareholders want to stay part of the new entity and which want to cash out. .

CORRECTION: Perplexity AI’s application for TikTok will result in the creation of a new combined entity that will bring together Perplexity, TikTok US and new equity partners. A previous version of this article made a mistake by one of the contributors.