Meta approached Perplexity before massive Scale AI deal
Meta approached artificial intelligence startup Perplexity AI about a potential takeover bid before ultimately investing $14.3 billion into Scale AI, CNBC confirmed on Friday.
The two companies did not finalize a deal, according to two people familiar with the matter who asked not to be named because of the confidential nature of the negotiations.
One person familiar with the talks said it was “mutually dissolved,” while another person familiar with the matter said Perplexity walked away from a potential deal.
Bloomberg earlier reported the talks between Meta and Perplexity. Perplexity declined to comment. Meta did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
Meta’s attempt to purchase Perplexity serves as the latest example of Mark Zuckerberg‘s aggressive push to bolster his company’s AI efforts amid fierce competition from OpenAI and Google parent Alphabet. Zuckerberg has grown agitated that rivals like OpenAI appear to be ahead in both underlying AI models and consumer-facing apps, and he is going to extreme lengths to hire top AI talent, as CNBC has previously reported.
Meta now has a 49% stake in Scale after its multibillion-dollar investment, though the social media company will not have any voting power. Scale AI’s founder Alexandr Wang, along with a small number of other Scale employees, will join Meta as part of the agreement.
Earlier this year, Meta also tried to acquire Safe Superintelligence, which was reportedly valued at $32 billion in a fundraising round in April, as CNBC reported on Thursday.
Daniel Gross, the CEO of Safe Superintelligence, and former GitHub CEO Nat Friedman are joining Meta’s AI efforts, where they will work on products under Wang. Gross runs a venture capital firm with Friedman called NFDG, their combined initials, and Meta will get a stake in the firm.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said on the latest episode of the “Uncapped” podcast, which is hosted by his brother, that Meta had tried to poach OpenAI employees by offering signing bonuses as high as $100 million with even larger annual compensation packages.
“I’ve heard that Meta thinks of us as their biggest competitor,” Altman said on the podcast. “Their current AI efforts have not worked as well as they have hoped and I respect being aggressive and continuing to try new things.”
–CNBC’s Kate Rooney contributed to this report
Cheng Xin | Getty Images
Airbnb reported second-quarter results on Wednesday that beat analysts’ expectations.
Here’s how the company did based on average analysts’ estimates compiled by LSEG:
- Earnings per share: $1.03 vs. 93 cents expected
- Revenue: $3.10 billion vs. $3.04 billion expected
Revenue increased 13% from $2.75 billion during the same period last year. The company reported net income of $642 million, or $1.03 per share, up from $555 million, or 86 cents per share, a year earlier.
In the third quarter, Airbnb expects to report revenue of $4.02 billion to $4.10 billion, or $4.06 billion in the middle of the range. Analysts were expecting $4.05 billion for the period, according to LSEG.
In a letter to shareholders, the company said it had a strong second quarter, even against a volatile macroeconomic backdrop. U.S. President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff and trade policies plunged markets into chaos for much of April.
“Despite global economic uncertainty early in the quarter, travel demand picked up, and nights booked on Airbnb accelerated from April to July,” the company said.
Airbnb reported 134.4 million nights and seats booked, up 7% from a year ago and above the 133.35 million expected by StreetAccount.
Gross booking value, which Airbnb uses to report host earnings, service fees, cleaning fees and taxes, totaled $23.5 billion in the second quarter. That figure is above the $22.66 billion expected by analysts polled by StreetAccount.
Airbnb said it received authorization for new share repurchase program of up to an additional $6 billion of Class A common stock. The company said it repurchased $1 billion of Class A common stock during the second quarter, and previously had authorization to purchase $1.5 billion more as of June 30.
Airbnb shares were down slightly in extended trading. They’ve slipped 0.7% for the year as of Wednesday’s close, while the Nasdaq is up almost 10%.
Airbnb will hold its quarterly call with investors at 4:30 p.m. ET.
Doordash food delivery service in New York City on Feb. 13, 2025.
Danielle DeVries | CNBC
DoorDash shares climbed about 5% in extended trading on Wednesday after the food delivery company reported better-than-expected earnings and revenue for the second quarter.
Here’s how the company did compared to analyst estimates based on LSEG’s consensus:
- Earnings per share: 65 cents vs. 44 cents expected
- Revenue: $3.28 billion vs. $3.16 billion expected
Revenue jumped 25% from $2.63 billion a year earlier, DoorDash said in a press release. The company reported net income of $285 million, or 65 cents a share, after recording a loss of $157 million, or 38 cents per share, in the same period a year ago.
Orders increased 20% from a year earlier to 761 million. Gross order value (GOV) rose 23% to $24.2 billion.
DoorDash shares have soared 54% this year as of Wednesday’s close, lifting the company’s market cap to $109 billion. The Nasdaq is up almost 10% in 2025.
Doordash one day stock chart.
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