Perplexity’s Bold Move: Tracking Users Like Google to Sell Premium Ads

Perplexity isn’t just trying to compete with Google—it’s aiming to become Google.

In a recent episode of the TBPN podcast, CEO Aravind Srinivas dropped a bombshell: one of the key reasons Perplexity is developing its own browser is to gather data on users’ activities outside its app. Why? To fuel a premium ad business.

Why Perplexity Wants to Track Your Browsing Habits

Srinivas explained that while AI prompts within Perplexity’s app are often work-related, they don’t reveal much about users’ personal preferences.

“On the other hand, what are the things you’re buying; which hotels are you going to; which restaurants are you visiting; what are you spending time browsing—that tells us so much more about you.”

By tracking these behaviors, Perplexity hopes to build detailed user profiles, allowing it to serve hyper-targeted ads. Srinivas believes users won’t mind the surveillance—because, in theory, the ads will be more relevant to them.

“We plan to use all the context to build a better user profile and, maybe through our discover feed, we could show some ads there.”

The Comet Browser: A Setback, But Still Coming

Perplexity’s upcoming browser, Comet, faced some delays but is now expected to launch in May. The goal? To collect as much user data as possible—just like Google did with Chrome.

And speaking of Google, Srinivas didn’t shy away from the comparison.

“Quietly following users around the internet helped Google become the roughly $2 trillion market cap company it is today.”

Mobile Expansion: Partnerships with Motorola & Samsung

Perplexity isn’t stopping at browsers—it’s also pushing into mobile.

• A partnership with Motorola means Perplexity’s AI will be pre-installed on the Razr series, accessible via Moto AI by typing “Ask Perplexity.”
• Talks with Samsung are reportedly underway (as per Bloomberg), though Srinivas neither confirmed nor denied the discussions.

The Big Tech Privacy Paradox

Perplexity’s ambitions highlight a growing trend: even companies that position themselves as privacy-conscious eventually turn to data-driven ad models.

• Meta tracks users via Pixels, gathering data even from non-Facebook/Instagram users.
• Apple, despite its privacy-first branding, still defaults to location tracking for ad targeting in some apps.

Yet, this kind of tracking has fueled distrust in Big Tech, leading to regulatory crackdowns in the U.S. and Europe.

The Irony: Google’s Legal Battle & Perplexity’s Opportunism

Google is currently in court fighting the DOJ’s antitrust case, which accuses it of monopolistic practices in search and advertising. The government even wants Google to divest Chrome.

Interestingly, both OpenAI and Perplexity have expressed interest in buying Chrome if it goes up for sale—fitting, given Srinivas’ open admission that he wants to replicate Google’s playbook.

The Bottom Line

Perplexity is betting big on data-driven ads, following the same path that made Google a tech giant. But with growing scrutiny on user tracking, will users—and regulators—accept another company playing the same game?

One thing’s clear: The AI wars are turning into the next battle for your browsing data.