News Summary

Perplexity AI, an AI-powered search startup, is reportedly in early discussions to raise up to $1 billion in a new funding round, potentially doubling its valuation to $18 billion. This move comes as competition in the AI search space intensifies, with the company’s annual recurring revenue reaching $100 million. Perplexity, backed by investors including SoftBank, Nvidia, and Jeff Bezos, is expanding its offerings with the launch of an ‘agentic’ browser named Comet and an AI search engine for enterprise use.