Aravind Srinivas, CEO of Perplexity, told CNBC in an interview that the AI-powered search startup plans to go public in 2028. He said the company intends to stick to that timetable regardless of how the market reacts to anticipated IPOs from Anthropic and OpenAI.
Srinivas had previously stated only that Perplexity would not pursue a public listing before 2028; in the CNBC interview he provided a firmer timeline and emphasized that Perplexity’s plan is independent of the other two companies’ listings.
The timing is notable because Anthropic — developer of the Claude chatbot — confidentially filed documents for an IPO last week, and its most recent valuation reached the scale of several tens of billions of dollars. OpenAI also submitted a confidential filing on Monday. These transactions, together with SpaceX’s planned listing this week, could serve as important indicators of investor sentiment in the sector, Srinivas said.
Srinivas warned that if any of these major listings fail, the fallout could ripple across the broader technology industry. He suggested that SpaceX’s market debut this week will provide a signal for how investors might receive offerings from Anthropic or OpenAI.
At the same time, the CEO acknowledged that both Anthropic and OpenAI have earned high valuations by virtue of their market-leading positions. He cautioned, however, that absent meaningful technological advances in their models over the next six months, those companies could face significant challenges.
Srinivas also addressed corporate AI spending, a topic highlighted by recent comments from Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, about the high costs of deploying AI technologies. Srinivas mentioned the phenomenon known as “tokenmaxxing,” where employees artificially inflate AI usage to appear more productive to management. He argued that the practical solution is to match each task with the model best suited to it.
The CEO’s interview aired on CNBC on Tuesday evening. The announcement is not investment advice.
Key points
- Perplexity plans an IPO in 2028, CEO Aravind Srinivas confirmed.
- Anthropic and OpenAI have filed confidential IPO paperwork; Anthropic’s latest valuation was reported in the several-tens-of-billions-of-dollars range.
- Srinivas warned a failed major AI IPO could affect the whole tech sector; SpaceX’s listing this week may act as a barometer for investor appetite.
- He raised concerns about corporate AI spending and “tokenmaxxing,” recommending firms choose models that fit specific tasks.
Tags: stock market, IPO, artificial intelligence, Anthropic, OpenAI, Perplexity, SpaceX, Sam Altman
