[LOS ANGELES] Perplexity AI, an artificial intelligence (AI) startup vying with Google and OpenAI, is ramping up efforts to get prime placement for its virtual assistant on smartphones.
The company is in discussions with Samsung Electronics about integrating its assistant on the smartphone giant’s devices and has already reached an agreement with Lenovo Group’s Motorola for a similar arrangement, according to sources with knowledge of the matter.
The Samsung talks are early, while the Motorola tie-up will be announced this month, said the sources, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. Motorola is hosting a product event in New York City on Apr 24, where it plans to discuss the partnership.
The details of the Samsung deal are still being hashed out, the sources said. The terms could involve offering Perplexity as a default AI assistant option or preloading the startup’s Android app on phones. Samsung, the worldwide smartphone market leader, could also promote the assistant heavily as an option within the Galaxy Store, where users download apps.
Spokespeople for Perplexity, Samsung and Motorola declined to comment.
A deal with Perplexity is complicated by Samsung’s wide-ranging partnership with Alphabet, which powers many of the AI features on Samsung devices and provides the default search engine. But Samsung has been fostering a relationship with Perplexity for months. The South Korea-based company’s investment arm, called Next, backed the startup last year.
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Samsung is discussing making another investment in Perplexity in the near future, the sources said. The startup has been in broader talks with investors for a new round of funding, which would double its valuation to US$18 billion. It has discussed raising between US$500 million and US$1 billion, Bloomberg News reported in March.
Founded in 2022, Perplexity has gained popularity for real-time results and a search engine-like user interface. The assistant has the ability to surface in-depth research, and Perplexity can tap into models beyond its own, including those from OpenAI and Anthropic PBC.
The Motorola deal will include Perplexity being preloaded as an alternative assistant to Google’s Gemini. There will also be a tailored user interface for Motorola’s updated Razr foldable phones. And marketing from the device maker will encourage customers to try Perplexity.
Today, Motorola offers its own homegrown AI system and access to Google Gemini. Samsung takes a similar approach, providing its Bixby service alongside Google’s AI platform.
For San Francisco-based Perplexity, securing Motorola and Samsung deals would be a major boon to building its brand and gaining popularity in the US, where ChatGPT and Gemini are more established. While Motorola’s market share is slim in the smartphone industry, the company is making strides. Samsung, for its part, has a share of about 20 per cent globally, according to data from IDC.
Earlier this year, Perplexity announced a deal with Deutsche Telekom in Europe for an AI-centric phone. For that device, which will be unveiled later this year, Perplexity will be providing the underlying AI technology. BLOOMBERG
