Perplexity CEO confirms 2028 IPO plan amid AI listing race
Key takeaways
- "Agnostic of these two companies, we were planning for something in 2028, so that still remains the case," Srinivas said.
- Srinivas was candid about the potential downside if rival listings stumble.
- Chief Business Officer Dmitry Shevelenko framed the 2028 commitment as a business strategy rather than a constraint.
Perplexity CEO confirms 2028 IPO plan amid AI listing race Quartz · Thomas Fuller/SOPA Images/Light Rocket via Getty Images Cris Tolomia Tue, June 9, 2026 at 7:17 PM GMT+7 2 min read ANTH.PVT PEAI.PVT SPCX Perplexity AI is holding to a 2028 IPO target regardless of what happens with public offerings from Anthropic and Open AI, CEO Aravind Srinivas told CNBC. "Agnostic of these two companies, we were planning for something in 2028, so that still remains the case," Srinivas said.
Srinivas was candid about the potential downside if rival listings stumble. "I certainly think there will be ripple effects if they don't go well, like there is no sugar coating on that," he said. He added that SpaceX's IPO would serve as a leading indicator for how Anthropic and OpenAI would fare with investors. Still, he said he expected those listings to go well. "I think it's important for the AI industry that these IPOs go well, and I actually think they will go well, because they're doing well," he said.
Chief Business Officer Dmitry Shevelenko framed the 2028 commitment as a business strategy rather than a constraint. "By consistently holding 2028 as our earliest date for an IPO, Perplexity has been able to build a healthy, high-growth business," Shevelenko said in an emailed statement to Reuters. Questions about the company's financial footing arose in 2025, prompting Srinivas to push back on concerns, saying Perplexity had ample runway and would not pursue a public offering before 2028.