Perplexity, the AI-powered search startup positioning itself as a Google competitor, is facing fresh legal trouble.
On September 10th, Encyclopedia Britannica and its subsidiary Merriam-Webster filed a lawsuit in New York federal court accusing the company of copyright and trademark infringement.
The lawsuit alleges that Perplexity’s “answer engine” scrapes their websites, siphons internet traffic, and plagiarizes copyrighted content. Britannica also claims trademark violations, arguing that Perplexity attaches their brand names to hallucinated or incomplete answers. As an example, the filing cites the word “plagiarize,” showing Perplexity’s definition nearly identical to Merriam-Webster’s.
Perplexity has already been accused of “stealth crawling” sites that block bots, a practice also linked to other AI firms. Critics, including some publishers, have labeled the service a “bullshit machine” for repackaging original reporting and research without proper attribution. The startup, backed by investors such as Jeff Bezos, has faced clashes with major outlets including Forbes, The New York Times, and the BBC. In October 2024, News Corp also sued Perplexity over similar allegations.
While some publishers have taken legal action, others have opted for collaboration. Time magazine, the Los Angeles Times, and World History Encyclopedia have joined Perplexity’s publisher programs, with the latter recently launching an AI-powered chatbot built on Perplexity’s technology.
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