以下文章来源于东四十条资本 ，作者黎曼 东四十条资本 . 聚焦股权投资行业人物、事件、数据、研究、政策解读，提供专业视角和深度洞见 | 创投圈有趣的灵魂 将投中网设为"星标⭐"，第一时间收获最新推送 这是40岁的C罗首次高调进军科技领域。 作者丨 黎曼 来源丨 东四十条资本 明星热衷投资不算新奇事，但能投进当前最火的AI领域，并有所建树的并不多。据我观察，今年在AI圈表现出色的明星有两 位。 一位是前一阵投资AI企业赚到钱的歌手邓紫棋。 邓紫棋在2025年8月一档播客节目中透露，她于2019年投资了一家AI公司，现在这笔投资 "已经10倍赚回来了"。据悉，她 是通过有共同信仰背景的朋友引荐，结识了该公司的创始人。她在投资前进行了大量的阅读和研究，以理解公司业务和AI背后 的逻辑。除该AI公司外，她自2017年起共投资了三家科技公司，并表示这三家公司目前都处于盈利状态。 还有一位是近期有所动作的葡萄牙足球巨星C罗。近期，他在社交媒体上发布了一段视频，宣布投资人工智能搜索引擎 Perplexity AI，并成为其全球品牌代言人。 这位足球传奇人物手持手机，屏幕上显示着Perplexity的搜索界面，他微笑着说：" ...

明星热衷投资不算新奇事，但能投进当前最火的AI领域，并有所建树的并不多。据我观察，今年在AI 圈表现出色的明星有两位。 一位是前一阵投资AI企业赚到钱的歌手邓紫棋。 邓紫棋在2025年8月一档播客节目中透露，她于2019年投资了一家AI公司，现在这笔投资 "已经10倍赚 回来了"。据悉，她是通过有共同信仰背景的朋友引荐，结识了该公司的创始人。她在投资前进行了大 量的阅读和研究，以理解公司业务和AI背后的逻辑。除该AI公司外，她自2017年起共投资了三家科技 公司，并表示这三家公司目前都处于盈利状态。 还有一位是近期有所动作的葡萄牙足球巨星C罗。近期，他在社交媒体上发布了一段视频，宣布投资人 工智能搜索引擎Perplexity AI，并成为其全球品牌代言人。 这位足球传奇人物手持手机，屏幕上显示着Perplexity的搜索界面，他微笑着说："当我第一次使用这个 工具时，我就知道它能够改变世界。"视频中，背景是他位于马德里的豪宅，窗外是城市天际线。视频 下方，无数粉丝的留言与转发让这条消息迅速传遍全球。 这是40岁的C罗首次高调进军科技领域。此前，C罗的投资版图主要是传统的酒店、健身房、媒体等实 体产业。彭博亿万 ...

Core Insights - Cristiano Ronaldo has officially invested in the American AI startup Perplexity AI, becoming one of its shareholders, which has attracted global attention to the previously low-profile company [1] - Perplexity AI has emerged as a key player in the AI user competition in India, alongside industry giants like OpenAI and Google, showcasing its technological strength and market competitiveness [4][6] - The company aims to combine traditional search indexing with large language model reasoning capabilities to provide accurate, up-to-date, and verifiable information [9][10] Company Background - Perplexity AI was founded in 2022 by a team of former researchers from OpenAI, Facebook AI Research, and Quora, with the goal of improving search experiences that are often cluttered with ads and low-quality links [6][9] - The first product, Perplexity Ask, was launched in December 2022, integrating GPT-3.5 and Microsoft Bing technology to provide structured answers with source links, achieving over 10 million monthly visits early in 2023 [9][10] Product Development and Strategy - In 2024, Perplexity AI shifted its focus towards becoming an AI agent, aiming to actively assist users in completing specific tasks rather than just providing information [13][14] - The launch of the native AI browser Comet in July 2025 marked a significant step in its AI agent strategy, with a valuation increase from slightly over $500 million to $20 billion in less than two years [16][19] Market Position and Challenges - Despite rapid growth, Perplexity faces challenges in its business model, relying solely on subscription revenue without advertising, leading to low average revenue per user (ARPU) [19][21] - The company is exploring new avenues, such as the AI-driven patent search agent and an agentic commerce model, which aims to revolutionize the shopping experience by allowing AI to complete purchases on behalf of users [24][26] Future Outlook - The agentic AI trend represents a significant leap in AI technology and market potential, although challenges such as user trust and existing e-commerce dependencies remain [27]

Core Viewpoint - The investment by football superstar Cristiano Ronaldo in the AI unicorn Perplexity AI signifies a strategic partnership that merges sports celebrity influence with cutting-edge technology, aiming to challenge established giants like Google [1][15]. Group 1: Investment Overview - Cristiano Ronaldo announced his investment in Perplexity AI, a startup valued at $20 billion as of September 2025, which is recognized as a potential challenger to Google [2]. - The specific amount of Ronaldo's investment remains undisclosed, but its symbolic significance is substantial [2]. Group 2: Perplexity AI's Position - Perplexity AI, founded in 2022, aims to redefine search engines by eliminating advertisements and providing direct answers, positioning itself as an "answer engine" rather than a traditional search engine [9][10]. - The company has gained significant backing from notable investors, including Jeff Bezos and Nvidia, highlighting its potential in the tech landscape [1][9]. Group 3: Strategic Benefits of the Partnership - Ronaldo's global social media following of over 1 billion provides Perplexity with access to underpenetrated markets in the Middle East, Latin America, and Europe, which are seen as "blue ocean markets" for AI search [5]. - The collaboration will feature a "Cristiano Ronaldo Interactive Zone" on Perplexity's platform, allowing fans to engage with personalized content generated by AI [3]. Group 4: Challenges Faced by Perplexity AI - Despite its technological strengths, Perplexity faces challenges in user adoption, primarily due to its current user base being predominantly tech-savvy individuals, which limits its reach to the broader market [4]. - The company has encountered fierce competition from tech giants like Google and OpenAI, which have rapidly replicated its features [10][11]. Group 5: Founder's Vision and Company Resilience - Aravind Srinivas, the founder of Perplexity, has a prestigious background and aims to disrupt the search engine market by focusing on user needs rather than advertising revenue [7][9]. - The company has shown resilience in the face of adversity, including rejecting acquisition offers and continuing to innovate despite significant competition [12][13].

Core Viewpoint - The article highlights the remarkable journey of Perplexity, an AI unicorn founded by Aravind Srinivas and his partners, achieving a valuation of $130 billion in just three years, despite facing significant challenges from larger tech companies [1][3][22]. Group 1: Company Overview - Perplexity was founded in 2022 and has completed eight rounds of financing, with a total funding amount exceeding $100 million [5][20]. - The company recently raised $100 million at a valuation of $18 billion (approximately 130 billion RMB) [3][5]. - Perplexity's annual recurring revenue (ARR) is slightly below $100 million, leading to a valuation multiple of 180 times revenue, significantly higher than the industry average for AI startups [5][19]. Group 2: Product Development - The first product, Bird SQL, was launched in December 2022, aimed at transforming Twitter user queries into SQL statements [11][19]. - Following the success of Bird SQL, Perplexity released Perplexity Ask, the world's first conversational search engine, in January 2023, achieving 2 million active users within four months [13][19]. - The company faced challenges when Twitter discontinued its free API service, leading to a pivot towards creating a "question-and-answer information platform" [19][20]. Group 3: Competitive Landscape - Major tech companies like Google and Apple have shown interest in acquiring Perplexity, indicating its strong market position [6][19]. - Perplexity's founders have expressed concerns about larger companies copying their innovations, which has fueled their drive to succeed [2][22]. - The competitive environment intensified with the launch of similar features by Google Bard and ChatGPT, prompting Perplexity to focus on developing its own large language model (LLM) [19][20]. Group 4: Founders' Background - Aravind Srinivas, born in Chennai, India, pursued a career in tech, working at Google and OpenAI before founding Perplexity [9][10]. - The founding team consists of three individuals in their 20s, who aimed to create a user-centric search engine leveraging AI technology [10][11]. - The name "Perplexity" reflects a key concept in AI, representing the model's ability to predict text accurately [15].