Meta reportedly initiated internal discussions to acquire Perplexity, a leading AI-powered search startup valued at around $14 billion, before ultimately committing to a $14 billion investment in Scale AI. While those conversations didn’t lead to a deal, they reveal the company’s dual strategic focus.
🤔 Why Perplexity First?
- AI Search Is a Priority
Perplexity’s conversational search engine could’ve offered Meta a direct path for embedding AI-powered search into its platforms—mirroring how Apple evaluated Perplexity for Safari. - Shifted Focus to Data Infrastructure
As talks advanced, Meta opted for Scale AI instead—aiming to own the data-labeling backbone that powers all LLMs, including search and generative models. ainvest.com - Strategic Talent Acquisition
Pursuing both startups highlights Meta’s aggressive hiring of top AI talent. The Scale deal includes bringing CEO Alexandr Wang into Meta’s “superintelligence” initiative. - Regulatory Considerations
An acquisition of Perplexity might have attracted antitrust scrutiny. By investing in Scale AI instead, Meta sidesteps some regulatory hurdles while still gaining critical capabilities. - Broader AI Ambition
Meta’s pursuit of Perplexity—alongside talks with startups like Safe Superintelligence and Thinking Machines—shows ambition to lead across search, reasoning, and data infrastructure in the evolving AI ecosystem.
🔭 What It Signals
- Meta wants deeper infrastructure control, betting on data over point solutions.
- AI search remains a long-term target, but may require licensing or partnership, not acquisition.
- Talent is central: Hiring creators like Wang and others signals a move toward building a core “superintelligence” group at Meta.
✅ Final Takeaway
Meta’s early approach to Perplexity revealed a bold intent to lead in AI-powered search. However, the pivot to a major investment in Scale AI highlights a strategic pivot: control over training data infrastructure is now the top priority—supporting broader ambitions in generative AI, reasoning, and beyond.
