Mercury vs Perplexity AI
Side-by-side equity comparison for employees weighing offers at Mercury or Perplexity AI. Valuations, funding history, headcount growth, and secondary-market context.
| Mercury | Perplexity AI | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest valuation | $4B | $5B |
| Latest round | Series C | Series B |
| Round date | June 2024 | — |
| Total raised | $213M | $500M |
| Founded | 2017 | 2022 |
| Headquarters | San Francisco, CA | San Francisco, CA |
| Employees | 2,814 | 1,482 |
| Employee YoY growth | -2% | -4% |
| Primary industry | Fintech | Artificial Intelligence |
| Secondary-market price | $12.24 | — |
| Base-case equity multiple | 1x | 2x |
| Upside equity multiple | 1x | 2x |
| Lead investors | Sequoia Capital, Andreessen Horowitz | NEA, IVP |
| Status | private | private |
Overview
Mercury is a financial technology company that provides banking services tailored for startups, including checking and savings accounts, treasury management, and corporate cards.
Perplexity AI builds an AI-powered search engine that provides cited, conversational answers to user queries in real time.
Why we compare these
Mercury and Perplexity AI both appear on Sara's List 2024 .
If you're evaluating offers at either one, the equity math depends on more than the headline valuation — dilution, strike price, time to liquidity, and concentration risk all matter. Use our equity compensation calculator and exit calculator to model your own numbers.