Perplexity’s yearlong partnership with Indian telecom giant Airtel, which offered free Perplexity Pro subscriptions to 360 million customers starting in July 2025, appears to be yielding early signs of sustained revenue growth as the earliest free subscriptions expire, according to data from Sensor Tower and Appfigures.
The promotion drove explosive download growth, with Sensor Tower estimating 56 million downloads in India during the seven months the offer was available, far exceeding prior periods. While downloads dropped sharply after new redemptions closed in January, monthly active users remained elevated, and in-app purchase revenue continued rising even as download numbers fell. Sensor Tower analyst Abe Yousef said usage has remained resilient despite the promotion’s time-limited nature.
Appfigures co-founder Ariel Michaeli confirmed the growth was specific to Perplexity rather than reflecting broader AI app demand, noting that competitors like ChatGPT and Claude saw no comparable download surge. Appfigures data showed Perplexity’s monthly net mobile revenue in India climbing substantially since the deal began, though Michaeli cautioned against assuming all revenue growth stems directly from former Airtel users converting to paid plans.
The results offer an early signal for similar strategies pursued by OpenAI and Google, both of which later launched comparable free AI subscription offers in India, as companies continue testing whether subsidized access can eventually translate into durable paying customer bases in the price-sensitive market.
