Search engine startup Perplexity AI submitted a bid on Saturday to TikTok's Chinese parent ByteDance for Perplexity to reportedly merge with TikTok.

(Reuters) - Perplexity AI asked TikTok's Chinese parent company, ByteDance, on Saturday to allow the U.S. search engine startup to merge with TikTok U.S. and create a new entity combining them and New Capital Partners, CNBC reported.

Perplexity AI submitted a bid to TikTok parent ByteDance Ltd., to merge with its US operations and create a new entity, CNBC reported on Saturday.

Perplexity, an artificial intelligence search engine startup, has bid to merge with TikTok U.S. so the platform can avoid being banned in the country.

Just one day before TikTok is expected to shut down in the US, startup Perplexity AI has submitted a bid to TikTok’s parent company ByteDance proposing a merger that would allow it to continue operating,

Just hours before TikTok is expected to go dark, the venture capital-backed AI startup Perplexity has put in a bid to merge with the platform, CNBC reported and Business Insider confirmed with a source familiar with the matter.