Aravind Srinivas, CEO of Perplexity, has extended an enticing academic gift by offering free access to Perplexity Pro for all students and faculty at his alma mater, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras.
Srinivas, an IIT Madras alumnus, excitedly called this a starting point in Perplexity’s planned expansion across Indian campuses.
Srinivas’s move follows his earlier proposal to make Perplexity Pro available en-masse to students and faculty across India, contingent upon the Indian government’s co-operation.
He previously suggested working with Prime Minister Modi’s administration to establish an economic framework supporting this initiative.
Perplexity, sharing the competitive landscape with giants like OpenAI and Google, has demonstrated substantial growth.
With backing from prominent investors including Jeff Bezos and a hefty valuation surge to around $8 billion, Perplexity is poised to play a pivotal role in the business-to-consumer AI sphere.
The generous offer at IIT Madras not only reinforces Perplexity’s commitment to education but reflects Srinivas’s broader vision of advancing India’s AI capabilities.
Earlier in the day, he offered a million dollars and a personal time commitment to anyone willing to make a foundational AI model in India that can compete with the likes of China’s DeepSeek.
He has also expressed disagreement with anyone suggesting that the country shouldn’t be participating in the race to build the best AI models.