Perplexity India Revenue Jumps 60% After $200 Free AI Offer Expires
Updated
Updated · TechCrunch · Aug 18
Perplexity India Revenue Jumps 60% After $200 Free AI Offer Expires
3 articles · Updated · TechCrunch · Aug 18
Summary
Sensor Tower estimates Perplexity’s India in-app purchase and subscription revenue rose about 60% from February to mid-August, even as the earliest free Airtel subscriptions began expiring last month.
3.3 million downloads in India between February and July were down more than 90% from the prior six months after new redemptions closed in January, but monthly active users still held near 14 million in July.
9% higher average daily revenue from July 18 to August 12 than in the prior 30 days suggests some post-trial spending, though auto-renewal means some users may have been charged without actively choosing to subscribe.
56 million downloads during the seven-month Airtel promotion and a peak of 22 million monthly users in October show how sharply the giveaway changed Perplexity’s scale in India.
India is becoming an early proving ground for AI bundling: OpenAI and Google later launched similar free offers, and Perplexity’s renewals are the first large test of whether free premium access can turn into paying users.