For Intelligent Search on its app, Paytm Collaborates with Perplexity AI

Nitin Konde, Varun Bhardwaj

27 Feb 2025 — 2 min read

Paytm Partners with Perplexity AI for Smarter In-App Search

Paytm (One97 Communications Ltd.), a digital payments startup, announced on 27 February that it has teamed up with Perplexity, a US-based artificial intelligence company, to incorporate AI-powered search features into its app. According to a release from Paytm, the partnership would enable customers to ask common enquiries, research subjects in their native tongue, and leverage AI-driven insights to make wise financial decisions. According to Paytm's founder and CEO, Vijay Shekhar Sharma, the company is enabling millions of Indian users to benefit from artificial intelligence (AI) through Perplexity, which will make financial and knowledge services easier to use and more accessible.

Why Paytm Chooses Perplexity AI?

Known as an AI-powered "answer engine," Perplexity provides users with sourced, real-time answers to their questions. According to the company, the integration of its technologies into the Paytm app is intended to assist customers in making well-informed decisions, especially when it comes to managing their money and examining market trends. Perplexity's conversational 'response engine' uses real-time, reliable sources to provide users with in-line citations for their queries. Former employees of OpenAI, Meta, Quora, Bing, and Databricks launched the business in 2022. According to Aravind Srinivas, CEO and co-founder of Perplexity, the company's AI-powered search technology will enable millions of people to get reliable, real-time answers so they can easily make educated judgements.

India’s Growing Digital Economy

India's digital economy, which accounted for 11.74% of the country's GDP in 2022–2023 (INR 31.64 lakh crore, or USD 402 billion), has become a major driver of economic growth. The digital economy, which employs 14.67 million people (2.55% of the total), is almost five times more productive than the overall economy, as per the central government's data. The core digitally enabled industries, which include ICT services and the production of computers, communication devices, and electronic components, accounted for 7.83% of GVA (Gross Value Added), with digital platforms and intermediates contributing an additional 2%.

Additionally, 2% of GVA was added by digitisation in conventional industries like retail, education, and BFSI, demonstrating the widespread influence of digital transformation. By 2029–2030, the digital economy is expected to surpass manufacturing and agriculture in terms of its contribution of GVA, reaching 20%. Rapid AI use, cloud services, and the emergence of global capability centres (GCCs), of which 55% are located in India, are important growth drivers. Multinational firms created GCCs as offshore hubs to offer a range of services to their parent companies, such as business process management, IT support, and research and development.

By incorporating AI-powered search into the Paytm app, Paytm is tackling this issue and empowering users to ask common enquiries, research subjects in their native tongue, and make wise financial choices. This invention strengthens digital literacy and reaffirms our dedication to advancing technology for an India powered by AI and smarter.