Advertising head mysteriously exits position nine months following appointment
Perplexity, the AI search startup, has been making waves in the tech industry since its launch in 2024. After months of development, the company's advertising implementation is finally here, initially targeting a Q4 2024 launch for its ad platform.
The platform has attracted significant investment from prominent technology figures such as Jeff Bezos, Nvidia, Databricks, and Bessemer Venture Partners. This funding has helped Perplexity to expand its offerings and reach new heights.
Perplexity's user base is impressive, with 80% of users holding undergraduate degrees, 30% in senior leadership positions, and 65% working in high-income white-collar professions. This makes Perplexity an attractive platform for advertisers looking to reach a sophisticated and affluent audience.
Taz Patel, a former co-founder and chief revenue officer at influencer-marketing firm Captiv8, joined Perplexity in December 2024 to develop the startup's emerging advertising business. Under his leadership, Perplexity circulated a pitch deck to advertisers promoting the app's reach and user demographics.
In November 2024, Perplexity launched an AI-powered shopping hub backed by Amazon and Nvidia. This hub provides product recommendations in response to user queries, making shopping more convenient for users.
Perplexity's advertising model follows a CPM (cost per thousand impressions) structure, with CPM prices exceeding $50. This high price reflects the value advertisers place on reaching Perplexity's affluent and educated user base.
However, in August 2025, Taz Patel, the head of advertising and shopping at Perplexity, left the company. This departure came just days after Amazon blocked AI bots from major tech companies including Perplexity.
Despite these challenges, Perplexity continues to innovate and explore new monetization models. In July 2025, the company launched its Perplexity Max subscription tier, providing unlimited access to advanced AI models for $200 per month. This tier also includes the Comet browser, exclusively for Max subscribers.
Perplexity's growth has been impressive, with the platform processing over 100 million search queries per week and more than 230 million queries monthly. The platform has been downloaded over 2 million times and has partnerships with publisher partners such as Gannett, who share in revenues from content licensing deals.
In October 2024, Perplexity expanded its offerings by introducing Spaces, an AI-powered collaboration hub aimed at professionals, content creators, business strategists, and academic researchers. This premium tier targets those looking for advanced AI capabilities to enhance their work and research.
Perplexity's journey is far from over, and the company continues to push the boundaries of what AI can achieve. With its strong user base, innovative offerings, and ambitious plans for the future, Perplexity is a startup to watch.
