Aravind Srinivas, the Perplexity CEO and founder, is an Indian-origin tech leader known for his work at Perplexity AI after leaving Google. Often positioned as a major ChatGPT rival, he has become central to the growing Perplexity vs ChatGPT debate in the AI industry.
Who is Aravind Srinivas?
Aravind Srinivas is an Indian-origin tech entrepreneur from Chennai who is making big leaps in the world of artificial intelligence. At just the age of 31, he is the co-founder and CEO of Perplexity AI. Perplexity is a fast-growing AI company that is often seen as a strong rival to ChatGPT. His story is about determination from his student days in India to leading one of the most talked-about AI startups in the world.
Early Life and Education
Aravind Srinivas grew up in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, where his mother dreamed of seeing him study at IIT Madras. He achieved that dream, earning dual degrees in Electrical Engineering in 2017.
Although he wasn’t able to switch to Computer Science as he wanted, he didn’t give up easily he taught himself Python and began working on AI projects. Additionally his talent helped him win recognition in machine-learning contests and earn an internship with deep-learning pioneer Yoshua Bengio.
He later went on to do a PhD in Artificial Intelligence at UC Berkeley, that is one of the world’s top research universities. Before starting his own company, he worked at Google AI, gaining valuable experience that helped shape his vision for the future of technology.
Building Perplexity AI
In 2022, Aravind Srinivas founded Perplexity AI along with Denis Yarats, Johnny Ho, and Andy Konwinski. Their idea was simple but powerful that is to create a search engine that gives clear, conversational answers instead of just lists of links.
Perplexity combines the best of web search and AI chat, providing answers with sources so users can check the facts themselves.
By 2025, the company was valued at around $18 billion, showing how quickly it has grown. Perplexity also partnered with Bharti Airtel in India to offer free access to Perplexity Pro for millions of users, helping it reach a wider audience in one of the biggest internet markets in the world.
Vision and Future Plans
Aravind Srinivas wants Perplexity AI to make online search more transparent, fast, and trustworthy. His goal is to help people get direct, reliable answers without spending time jumping between websites. The company has also launched Comet, a voice-based AI browser for businesses and publishers.
Even as big tech companies show interest in buying Perplexity, Srinivas plans to keep it independent and take it public after 2028.
Why He Matters?
Aravind Srinivas’s rise from an ordinary student in Chennai to a global AI leader shows the growing influence of Indian innovators in technology. Moreover his inclusion in the Hurun India Rich List 2025 shows how his vision and hard work have paid off. More importantly, his company is changing how people interact with information making the internet smarter, faster, and easier to use.
