Perplexity’s free AI offer left it with millions more users in India

Perplexity’s partnership with Airtel offers an early test of whether free premium AI access can create durable users and revenue in India. In July 2025, India’s second-largest telecom operator offered its 360 million customers a free 12-month Perplexity Pro subscription, normally worth about $200. New redemptions ended January 16, while access lasted one year from activation. The promotion generated 5.9 million Indian downloads in July 2025, up 625% month over month and exceeding Perplexity’s 5.4 million downloads during the entire first half of the year, according to Sensor Tower. Downloads reached 56 million during the seven-month redemption period, more than nine times the preceding seven-month period. Monthly active users rose to 8.9 million in July and peaked at 22 million in October. After redemptions closed, downloads fell more than 90%. Sensor Tower estimates 3.3 million downloads from February through July, versus the preceding six months. However, July monthly active users remained nearly 14 million—down 37% from October but more than five times the approximately 2.6 million average in the first half of 2025. Monetization also showed positive signals. Indian in-app purchase and subscription revenue between February and mid-August rose about 60% from the offer period. Average daily revenue from July 18 through August 12 was 9% above the prior 30 days and 27% above the first half of 2026. Appfigures estimated monthly net mobile revenue rose from $34,000 in January 2025 to $70,000 in December and $156,000 in July 2026. Revenue for the first seven months of 2026 reached $878,000, up 16% from all of 2025. The evidence remains inconclusive. Auto-renewal means some payments may reflect users who failed to cancel, and Sensor Tower cannot separate former Airtel subscribers from other customers. Appfigures also cautioned that promotion-driven visibility may have attracted non-Airtel payers. Perplexity’s downloads surged while ChatGPT and Claude remained broadly stable. OpenAI later made ChatGPT Go free for a year, and Google offered AI Pro free for 18 months to eligible Reliance Jio users. India is the world’s largest generative AI download market, but the coming renewal cycles will determine whether scale converts into sustainable paid adoption.