Aravind Srinivas: Perplexity's Race to Build Agentic Search

Aravind Srinivas on June 16, 2025 at AI Startup School in San Francisco. Aravind Srinivas started Perplexity with one goal: to rethink how we search, browse, and interact with information online. In this conversation, he shares the journey from hacking together a natural-language-to-SQL search tool to building a product used by millions around the world. He talks about the big bet on the AI-powered browser, why agents—not just chatbots—are the next step, and how speed, accuracy, and focus help a startup compete against giants. Along the way, he reflects on co-founder dynamics, early technical challenges, and what it takes to keep building when the biggest players in the world are racing alongside you. Apply to Y Combinator: https://ycombinator.com/apply Work at a startup: https://workatastartup.com Chapters: 00:48 - Perplexity's Current Status and Challenges 01:16 - The Browser Bet 03:18 - Competition and Market Dynamics 04:43 - The Importance of Speed and Innovation 05:51 - Founding Perplexity: The Early Days 09:18 - Product Evolution and User Experience 19:44 - Running the Company and Future Outlook 20:15 - AI Tools in Software Engineering 20:31 - Adoption and Implementation of AI Coding Tools 21:11 - Challenges and Benefits of AI in Development 22:35 - Brand Value and Competition 23:56 - Network Effects and Integrations 27:40 - Business Model and Revenue Streams 29:54 - Advice for Founders 31:33 - Audience Q&A