The AI boom of the past two years has largely been a two-horse race. Alphabet Inc.’s Google and Microsoft Corp.-funded OpenAI have duked it out for customers, while Amazon.com Inc. and Meta Platforms Inc. have nibbled at the margins for market share. All told, the boom has consolidated wealth and power among tech’s six biggest companies, raising their market valuations by $8 trillion since ChatGPT’s launch two years ago. But at least one new company has emerged as an outsider with a chance of challenging their oligopoly.

More than 15 million people, according to a spokeswoman, are regularly using Perplexity AI, an “answer engine” that competes with Google’s search and advertising business. The website and app shot up in value over the course of 2024, from $1 billion at the start of the year to $9 billion in December when it closed a $500 million funding round. Its founder, Aravind Srinivas, is a consummate negotiator who has plugged himself deeply into Silicon Valley's network while diffusing tension with competitors and critics.

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