Confusion Tiktok revised fusion suggestions

Perplexity AI on Sunday revised the merger proposal it had submitted to the Tiktok-Moms company ByteDance. The proposal, which would create a new unit that combines Perplexity and Tiktok Us, will now also allow the US government to own up to 50 % of the new company in a future stock exchange listing, CNBC has experienced.

A proposal document seen by CNBC, which was shared with city dancing and potential new investors, described detailed the creation of a new American holding company, “Newco.”

The document suggests that bytance contributes Tiktok us, minus its core recommendation algorithm, in return for the company’s existing investors receiving equity in the new company. Perplexity AI would offer itself in exchange for its own investors receiving a distribution of the Newco share.

Money for the merger would come from “new third-party capital providers (mutually agreed)” according to the proposal document, which would provide capital for a “disposable outcome payment to bytance investors in exchange for simplified governance” and to help the new unit grow.

Perplexity AI, the artificial intelligence search engine starts competing with Openai and GoogleStarted 2024 with a valuation of about $ 500 million and ended the year with a valuation of about $ 9 billion, after attracting increasing investor interest in the midst of the generative AI boom-as well as controversy about plagiarism charges. Investors have seen AI-Assisted search as one of Google’s most important risks as it potentially changes the way consumers gain access to information online.

Last year, Openai, who started the generative AI craze in late 2022 with Chatgpt, introduced a search engine called SearchGPT. Google later launched “AI Overviews” in search so users can see a quick overview of the answers at the top of the results.

The proposed new structure would allow most of Bytedance’s existing investors to retain their shareholdings and would bring more video to Perplexity, a source told the situation to CNBC earlier this month. And although bytedance has publicly hinted it won’t sell Tiktok us, that’s part of the reason why Perplexity AI thinks it has a chance with its bid – as the deal would be a merger rather than a sale, the source added.

According to the revised proposal, the US government could own up to half of the new structure when it first IPOs at least $ 300 billion, according to the source.

A reasonable price is “good north of $ 50 billion”, but the final number attached to the proposal will partly be decided by which of the bytedancer’s existing shareholders who wish to remain part of the new unit and who wish to pay out, According to source.

Although any potential transaction between Perplexity AI and Bytedance is likely to take months to implement, President Donald Trump has so far been temporarily restored Tiktok in the United States and proposed plans that would involve an American stakeholder who buys the business and then sells a 50%share to US Government. In a video released to Tiktok earlier this month, CEO Shou Zi Chew said: “I would like to thank President Trump for his commitment to working with us to find a solution that keeps Tiktok available in the US.”

Perplexity is one of several businesses and individuals who are vying to be the one who buys or merges with Tiktok which allegedly includes Microsoft. Oracle and potentially Elon Musk. On Saturday, President Trump said he would probably have a decision on the app’s future in the United States within the next 30 days.