Who Is Aravind Srinivas? Meet Chennai-Born Co-Founder Of AI-Powered Search Engine Perplexity

Indian-origin entrepreneur Aravind Srinivas, co-founder of the groundbreaking AI firm Perplexity AI, has risen to global prominence-not just for his innovative work in artificial intelligence but also for standing his ground against tech titan Elon Musk, who once attempted to block his funding from USAID.

Who Is Perplexity Founder Aravind Srinivas?

Born and raised in Chennai, Srinivas hails from a Tamil Hindu family. Like his role model (and now rival) Google CEO Sundar Pichai, Srinivas is an alumnus of IIT Madras, where he earned dual degrees (B.Tech and M.Tech) in electrical engineering. In 2017, he moved to the US to pursue a Ph.D. in computer science at UC Berkeley, further honing his expertise in AI and machine learning.

Before launching Perplexity, Srinivas held research roles at OpenAI, Google Brain, and DeepMind, solidifying his reputation as a leading AI researcher. His contributions earned him a spot on TIME's 2024 list of the "100 Most Influential People in AI."

What is Perplexity AI?

Founded in 2022 in San Francisco, Perplexity AI is a free, AI-powered conversational search engine designed to transform how we access information. Unlike traditional search engines, it leverages large language models (LLMs) like GPT-4, Claude, and Mistral AI to provide real-time, well-researched answers with cited sources.

Key features include:

✔ AI-Driven Search - Conversational, human-like responses.
✔ Web Browsing - Pulls the latest information from the internet.
✔ Citations - Ensures transparency with source links.
✔ Deep Research Mode - Spends minutes refining answers for complex queries.
✔ Multi-Modal Search - Supports text, images, and document-based queries.

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang (who personally uses Perplexity)

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos

Ex-YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki

Google's Chief Scientist Jeff Dean

Meta's AI Chief Yann LeCun

With a valuation of $14 billion (₹1.21 lakh crore), Perplexity is redefining AI-powered search-offering speed, accuracy, and reliability in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.

Srinivas describes it best: "The fastest way to get answers to any questions."

Meanwhile, Apple and Meta are in the race to acquire Perplexity, which is a rapidly growing AI-powered search engine.