A nearly 3-year-old AI startup has reportedly caught the attention of two of the largest and most influential tech companies, underscoring the fierce competition for AI talent and push to become leaders in what some believe will be the next major evolution of the internet.

The interest from both Silicon Valley giants raises an important question: why are they eyeing a much smaller company like Perplexity?

Heer notes that Gurman’s story didn’t start this rumor; it was preceded by an analyst’s call for Apple to buy Perplexity. Well, technically, the analyst said Apple “must” buy Perplexity, but that’s just analyst talk for saying why Apple “should” or maybe even just “could” buy Perplexity.