Samsung should also rely on Perplexity for Galaxy smartphones

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According to a report by Bloomberg, Samsung no longer wants to rely solely on Google's Gemini, but wants to pre-install the competitor Perplexity on Galaxy smartphones. Samsung is also said to be investing heavily in the AI company.

Samsung: Perplexity alongside Gemini allegedly on the Galaxy S26

As the news agency claims to have learned from insider sources, Samsung and Perplexity are negotiating a far-reaching partnership. The Perplexity app, including the assistant, is to be installed as standard on upcoming Samsung Galaxy devices, and the start-up's search functions are to be integrated into the Samsung web browser.

The companies have also talked about integrating Perplexity's technology into Samsung's Bixby voice assistant. Samsung is expected to announce the partnership with Perplexity later this year and include the service as an optional standard assistant in the Galaxy S26 series, which is expected in early 2026.

According to the report, Samsung and Perplexity have also discussed the development of an "AI-infused operating system" and an AI agent app. This should be able to use functions from Perplexity and a range of other AI assistants.

In addition to integrating Perplexity into Samsung products, the Korean company is set to become one of Perplexity AI's largest investors in the future. In a new financing round, the AI company wants to raise 500 million US dollars at a valuation of 14 billion dollars, according to another Bloomberg report.

Perplexity: Gemini will apparently soon have AI competition on Samsung smartphones

Since the Galaxy S25 series, Google's Gemini has served as the standard assistant, which can also be called up via the side button. This position was previously held by Samsung's own assistant Bixby, which now only plays second fiddle. Samsung's assistant serves as a kind of interface under Gemini on Galaxy devices, with which Samsung services such as calendar and system settings can be operated via voice control.

Samsung's Bixby is currently about as smart as Apple's Siri, so it made sense to give Google's Gemini priority on Galaxy devices. However, if Bixby is given Perplexity as its technical foundation, the voice assistant could improve.

Samsung is unlikely to experience any sanctions or restrictions from Google due to the integration of Perplexity, even though Google pays Samsung "huge sums of money" every month to pre-install Gemini on Galaxy smartphones and other devices, according to Peter Fitzgerald, Google's Vice President of Platforms and Device Partnerships. According to an agreement, Samsung is allowed to install alternative generative AI services alongside Google's AI assistant.

Samsung would not be the first Android manufacturer to use Perplexity in its smartphones alongside Gemini: Motorola announced the Edge 60 and 60 Pro in April, which comes with the AI tool out of the box alongside Gemini. However, a partnership with the largest Android smartphone manufacturer would mean a massive growth spurt.

For Safari: Apple is reportedly also interested in Perplexity

Perplexity is apparently not only in demand in the Android world as an alternative to Google's AI, but also at Apple. At the beginning of May, Apple's Head of Services Eddy Cue indicated that the company was actively looking for an AI-supported search engine for Safari. Among others, the company is interested in Perplexity as a service provider.

According to Cue, Apple would not use a pure AI search like Perplexity as a standard search, but as an option. There are also indications that Google will no longer be the default search on Apple devices in the future, which allegedly generates annual revenues of up to 20 billion dollars for the iPhone manufacturer.

(afl)