Perplexity Selects PayPal to Power Agentic Commerce

Rhea-AI Summary

PayPal (PYPL) has partnered with Perplexity to power agentic commerce across the Perplexity Pro platform. Starting summer 2025 in the U.S., users can make instant purchases through PayPal or Venmo while interacting with Perplexity's AI for product searches, travel bookings, or ticket purchases. The integration leverages PayPal's secure tokenized wallet and passkey checkout flows, eliminating the need for passwords.

The partnership will give Perplexity access to PayPal's network of 430+ million active accounts across approximately 200 markets. Key features include agentic commerce integration, global reach, and secure transactions utilizing PayPal's fraud detection and security protocols. The collaboration aims to transform conversational AI interactions into seamless commercial transactions.

Positive

• Access to PayPal's extensive network of 430+ million active accounts
• Expansion into approximately 200 markets through PayPal's global presence
• New revenue stream potential through integrated commerce solutions
• Enhanced security features through PayPal's fraud detection and data security protocols

Negative

• Initial rollout limited to U.S. market
• Success depends on user adoption of AI-driven commerce

Insights

Fintech Analyst

PayPal's partnership with Perplexity creates new revenue streams through AI-driven conversational commerce, strengthening PayPal's market position against competitors.

This partnership represents a strategic move by PayPal to tap into the emerging conversational commerce market through Perplexity's AI platform. By embedding payment functionality directly into Perplexity's conversational search flow, PayPal positions itself at the forefront of agentic commerce - where AI assistants can complete purchases on behalf of users.

The deal integrates PayPal's payment infrastructure into Perplexity Pro, allowing users to seamlessly purchase products, book travel, or buy tickets without leaving the chat interface. This creates a frictionless purchase experience that could significantly increase conversion rates compared to traditional e-commerce flows that require multiple steps.

For PayPal, this partnership provides access to Perplexity's growing user base and creates new transaction volume by capturing purchases at the moment of discovery. The implementation of PayPal's secure tokenized wallet and emerging passkey checkout flows demonstrates the company's continued innovation in payment technology.

This move comes as PayPal faces increasing competition from alternative payment providers. By embedding itself into AI-driven shopping experiences, PayPal is creating differentiation through convenience while leveraging its established trust advantage - a critical factor as consumers consider security in AI-mediated transactions.

The partnership also positions PayPal to capture valuable data on consumer intent and purchasing behavior in conversational contexts, potentially creating additional value beyond transaction fees. With plans to expand globally across PayPal's 430+ million active accounts in approximately 200 markets, this represents a significant opportunity to extend PayPal's reach in the rapidly evolving AI commerce landscape.

Smart shopping comes to Perplexity as PayPal powers intelligent, in-flow shopping via Agentic AI

SAN JOSE, Calif., May 14, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Perplexity today announced that it has partnered with PayPal to power agentic commerce across its Perplexity Pro platform. Starting this summer in the U.S., consumers can check out instantly with PayPal or Venmo when they ask Perplexity to find products, book travel, or buy tickets.

"Perplexity wants to have accurate, trustworthy answers wherever people are making decisions. PayPal is a natural partner because we share a vision for how important trust is in the age of AI," said Aravind Srinivas, Cofounder and CEO of Perplexity.

 "This partnership unlocks new possibilities, where conversations now drive commerce," said Alex Chriss, President and CEO of PayPal. "We're making it easy and secure to shop right in the chat when inspiration strikes. It's a powerful step in making conversational commerce a reality."

The entire process, including payment, shipping, tracking, and invoicing will be handled behind the scenes with PayPal's account linking, secure tokenized wallet and emerging passkey checkout flows, which could eliminate the need for passwords and streamline the experience to a single user query or click.

Key features include:

• Agentic Commerce: Integration of PayPal's commerce solutions, enabling users to buy products or services directly in Perplexity's chat interface.
• Global Reach: Expanding Perplexity's commerce tools to PayPal's 430+ million active accounts across approximately 200 markets.
• Secure Transactions: Leveraging PayPal's robust fraud detection and data security protocols.

Perplexity is a conversational search and discovery engine that fuses live web data with generative models to deliver cited answers—and the next best action—in a single chat. Whether users are researching a topic, comparing products, or planning a trip, Perplexity turns natural questions into trustworthy, ready-to-use results, streamlining how people learn, decide, and get things done online.

About Perplexity
Perplexity is an AI-powered answer engine founded in 2022 by former members of OpenAI, Meta, Quora, Bing, and Databricks. It provides real-time, conversational responses to user queries with inline citations from trusted sources, answering over 150 million questions each week. The company's startup program provides free API credits and Enterprise Pro to qualified startups. Startups can find out more at perplexity.ai/startups and users can try the platform at perplexity.ai/ or on iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, Sonar API and soon, Comet Browser.

About PayPal
PayPal has been revolutionizing commerce globally for more than 25 years. Creating innovative experiences that make moving money, selling, and shopping simple, personalized, and secure, PayPal empowers consumers and businesses in approximately 200 markets to join and thrive in the global economy. For more information, visit https://www.paypal.com, https://about.pypl.com/ and https://investor.pypl.com/.

Media Contact
Mediarelations@paypal.com

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/perplexity-selects-paypal-to-power-agentic-commerce-302454733.html

SOURCE PayPal Holdings, Inc.

FAQ

What is PayPal's partnership with Perplexity in 2025?

PayPal is partnering with Perplexity to power agentic commerce across the Perplexity Pro platform, enabling users to make instant purchases through PayPal or Venmo while interacting with Perplexity's AI.

When will PayPal's integration with Perplexity launch?

The integration will launch in summer 2025, initially in the U.S. market.

How many markets will PYPL reach through the Perplexity partnership?

The partnership will provide access to approximately 200 markets through PayPal's global network of over 430 million active accounts.

What security features does PayPal provide in the Perplexity partnership?

PayPal provides secure tokenized wallet, passkey checkout flows, fraud detection, and data security protocols for secure transactions.

How does PayPal's agentic commerce work with Perplexity?

Users can make purchases directly through Perplexity's chat interface while searching for products, booking travel, or buying tickets, with PayPal handling payments, shipping, tracking, and invoicing behind the scenes.