Perplexity AI launches $50M venture fund

Perplexity AI, the developer of a popular artificial intelligence-based search engine, is preparing to launch a $50 million venture fund for investments in early-stage AI startups. According to informed sources who spoke to CNBC, the fund will focus on pre-seed and seed stage projects based in the United States.

Although Perplexity AI will serve as an anchor investor, the majority of capital will come from external limited partners. The fund will be managed by two general partners – Kelly Graziadei and Joanna Lee Shevelenko, who previously led the early-stage fund f7 Ventures. According to SEC documents from October, Perplexity F7 Fund I has already filed an application to raise $50 million.

This decision comes amid rapid growth of the company itself. In November 2023, CNBC reported that Perplexity AI was in the final stage of raising $500 million at a $9 billion valuation. Experts view the company as a potential competitor to Google amid growing user interest in AI-powered internet information search.

The company has a unique advantage in identifying promising startups thanks to an extensive network of 80,000 developers integrated into its ecosystem. This allows Perplexity to track the most active users of its API and identify promising projects at early stages.

In January 2024, Perplexity also made a bid to merge with TikTok’s US division, which faces the threat of closure in the US. This move, along with the creation of a venture fund, demonstrates the company’s ambitious strategy to expand its presence in the technology market.

The creation of a venture fund marks a new stage in the development of the artificial intelligence market, which began with the launch of ChatGPT from OpenAI in late 2022. This step also reflects the growing tendency of successful AI companies to reinvest in the development of the artificial intelligence ecosystem.