The Federal Court of Australia has delivered a significant legal blow to Apple and Google, ruling that both tech giants abused their market dominance in app distribution to stifle competition.

The decision marks a major win for Epic Games, the publisher behind Fortnite, in its years-long global battle to dismantle restrictive app store policies.

Justice Jonathan Beach concluded on Tuesday that the companies’ practices in controlling their respective app stores amounted to anti-competitive conduct, though he stopped short of finding them guilty of “unconscionable conduct.” This ruling clears the path for Epic to reintroduce Fortnite and its Epic Games Store in Australia — bypassing the 30 percent commission Apple and Google typically charge on in-app purchases through their proprietary payment systems.

Epic’s CEO Tim Sweeney welcomed the ruling, saying Fortnite and the Epic Games Store would return to Australian users “soon” via Epic’s own platform.

“This is a step toward restoring fair competition and freeing developers from monopolistic control over app distribution,” Sweeney said.

Google, however, claimed partial victory, highlighting that the court rejected Epic’s demand to force Google to host rival app stores inside Google Play, as well as its challenge to certain “critical security protections.”

“We disagree with the court’s characterisation of our billing policies and practices, as well as its findings regarding some of our historical partnerships,” a Google spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

Apple similarly defended its ecosystem, calling the App Store “the safest way for users to get apps,” while noting it disagreed with several aspects of the decision.

The U.S. Legal Backdrop

Epic’s legal war against Apple and Google began in 2020 after the company deliberately broke both firms’ app store rules. It updated Fortnite with a feature allowing players to purchase in-game currency directly from Epic at a discounted rate, bypassing Apple and Google’s payment systems. In response, Apple pulled Fortnite from the App Store, and Google removed it from Google Play for devices that used the official store.

Epic immediately filed lawsuits in U.S. federal court, accusing both companies of violating antitrust laws by monopolizing the app distribution market and enforcing inflated commission rates. In its high-profile U.S. case against Apple, a California judge ruled in 2021 that Apple could no longer prohibit developers from linking to alternative payment systems, but stopped short of declaring Apple a monopoly under federal antitrust law. Both sides claimed partial victories, and appeals followed.

The legal pressure intensified in 2023 when Epic won a separate U.S. case against Google. A California jury sided with Epic, finding that Google’s Play Store policies — including deals with developers and handset makers to block competing app stores — were anti-competitive. This was a far more decisive win than Epic achieved against Apple in the U.S., and it is currently shaping ongoing settlement negotiations and potential remedies that could force Google to make sweeping changes to Android’s app distribution model.

These U.S. rulings have rippled globally. In the EU, Epic has leveraged the bloc’s Digital Markets Act to bring Fortnite back to iOS in Europe via third-party app stores, bypassing Apple’s commission. The Australian decision now adds another jurisdiction where the tech giants will have to rethink their gatekeeping role — and could inspire similar actions in Asia and Latin America.

Analysts have warned that if such rulings continue to accumulate, Apple and Google may be forced into a coordinated overhaul of their app store policies worldwide to avoid inconsistent regional rules. The global app economy generates well over $400 billion annually, and loosening the grip on app distribution would shift billions in revenue away from Apple and Google to developers and alternative platforms.

Beeple has announced that his next event, titled “Synthetic Theatre,” will be hosted by Danny McBride. The event is a collaboration between Beeple Studios and Rough House Pictures, featuring a night of live AI experiments with music, dance, improv, and film.

It will take place on October 3-4, 2025, at Beeple Studios in Charleston, South Carolina, and will include performances by Edi Patterson, Daniel J. O’Connor, Holly Herndon, and others. Tickets went on sale Monday at 11 am EST.

The event features live AI experiments in music, dance, improv, and film, showcasing how AI can generate unique digital content. AI algorithms, such as those used in generative art, enable artists to produce infinite variations of digital creations, which can be tokenized as NFTs to ensure authenticity and ownership on the blockchain.

Beeple’s prominence in the NFT space, particularly after his $69.3 million sale of Everydays – The First 5000 Days, underscores how NFTs provide a platform for artists to monetize digital works. This event could further popularize AI-generated NFTs, merging cutting-edge technology with artistic innovation.

Economic and Market Opportunities

NFTs allow artists to earn royalties on secondary sales through smart contracts, providing ongoing revenue streams. The integration of AI can enhance this by creating personalized or interactive NFTs, increasing their value and appeal.

For example, AI-powered NFTs could adapt to user preferences, as seen in virtual fashion or music tokens. The global reach of NFTs, combined with AI’s ability to analyze market trends in real-time, can help artists and creators target broader audiences.

Beeple’s event, hosted at his studio, could attract collectors and enthusiasts, boosting the NFT market’s visibility in Charleston and beyond. NFTs’ unique, indivisible nature and volatile market dynamics pose challenges for valuation under frameworks like US GAAP or IFRS.

AI can assist by analyzing market data for more accurate pricing, but the lack of standardized guidelines remains a hurdle. Beeple’s high-profile event may amplify discussions on how to account for AI-generated NFTs in financial statements.

The absence of clear tax and legal frameworks for NFTs, as seen in jurisdictions like Indonesia, could complicate their adoption. Events like Beeple’s may push regulators to address these gaps, especially as AI-driven NFTs gain traction.

The anonymity and price volatility of NFTs make them susceptible to fraud and money laundering. AI can help detect fraudulent NFTs but also introduces ethical challenges if used to replicate or “transform” existing art without proper attribution. NFTs eliminate intermediaries, allowing artists like those at Beeple’s event to directly reach collectors.

The NFT market peaked in 2021 but faced a bear market by 2023, with declining royalties and trading volumes. Beeple’s event could signal a resurgence, particularly for AI-driven NFTs, though market fluctuations remain a risk. While interest in NFTs has waned since early 2022, events like this could sustain momentum by showcasing innovative applications of AI and blockchain.

Beeple’s “Synthetic Theatre” event underscores the transformative potential of combining AI and NFTs in creative industries, offering new avenues for artistic expression, monetization, and global reach. However, challenges like valuation difficulties, regulatory gaps, and ethical concerns around AI-generated art must be addressed to ensure sustainable growth.

Perplexity, the fast-rising AI search engine startup, is raising yet another round of funding that could push its valuation to $20 billion, according to an email sent to prospective investors and a source familiar with the matter who spoke with Business Insider.

The figure represents a $2 billion leap from its $18 billion valuation secured in July, as first reported by Bloomberg, and a dramatic rise from its $520 million valuation in January 2024.

Founded in 2022, Perplexity has positioned itself as one of the most aggressive challengers in the AI sector, blending large language models with web search to deliver real-time, conversational answers. Over the past year, the company’s business trajectory has been nothing short of meteoric.

Annual recurring revenue soared from about $35 million in mid-2024 to over $150 million by the middle of 2025 — more than quadrupling in just 12 months.

We are currently doing more than $150 million in ARR, Perplexity’s head of communication, Jesse Dwyer, confirmed, declining to elaborate further.

The company has attracted heavyweight backers, including SoftBank, Nvidia, and Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, raising approximately $1.5 billion to date, according to PitchBook. But its latest moves suggest it is aiming to project even greater influence.

Earlier this week, Perplexity stunned the tech world by announcing a $34.5 billion bid, a figure nearly 100% higher than its expected valuation, to acquire Google’s Chrome browser. The proposal came as the Department of Justice pressured Google to divest Chrome over antitrust concerns. While Google has not indicated any willingness to sell, Perplexity claims it has secured commitments from several large venture capital funds to finance the purchase, though it has not disclosed names.

Analysts and industry insiders have been quick to question the seriousness of the bid. One venture capitalist, speaking anonymously to BI, dismissed it as “little more than a marketing stunt,” suggesting the move was designed to position Perplexity as a dominant player in the public eye, attract top talent, and secure more capital.

The timing of the Chrome play coincides with heightened competition in the AI browser space. Perplexity recently launched its own AI-native browser, Comet, directly challenging Google, Apple, and AI leaders like OpenAI, which is reportedly developing a browser of its own.

That competitive dynamic has also fueled speculation that Perplexity could become an acquisition target itself, particularly for Apple, which many analysts say is lagging in the AI race. Dan Ives, managing director at Wedbush Securities, has called an Apple acquisition of Perplexity a “no-brainer deal,” warning that “time is ticking” for the iPhone maker. Perplexity, for its part, insists it is “unaware of any M&A discussions” involving Apple.

Playing the Long Game in the AI Power Struggle

Perplexity’s pursuit of a $20 billion valuation, alongside its audacious bid for Chrome, appears designed to cement its status as a top-tier AI company in a market dominated by trillion-dollar incumbents.

The target valuation of $20 billion, while impressive, remains modest compared to the giants of the AI industry. OpenAI’s valuation is at least 10–25 times larger, depending on whether the realistic or optimistic figures are used. Even xAI, with its rapid funding and ambitious targets, sits at 4 to 10 times Perplexity’s valuation. And Alphabet, with its Gemini platform, operates on an entirely different scale—its sheer size highlights how far behind Perplexity still is.

AI Leaders’ Valuations vs. Perplexity

OpenAI

OpenAI recently completed a massive $40 billion funding round in March 2025, establishing a post-money valuation of approximately $300 billion.

Moreover, discussions are underway that could push OpenAI’s valuation even further—to around $500 billion—through a secondary share sale, allowing employees to cash out.

xAI (Elon Musk’s AI Venture)

Elon Musk’s AI firm xAI, merged with his social media company X under the banner X.AI Holdings, was valued at about $80 billion post-merger, with X (formerly Twitter) valued separately at $33 billion.

Recent funding maneuvers have brought its valuation up to approximately $113 billion, supported by debt and equity raises, including a $5 billion debt package.

Beyond that, xAI is reportedly targeting a valuation between $170 billion and $200 billion in upcoming rounds.

Google’s Gemini

Although Google’s Gemini initiative doesn’t come with a standalone valuation, Alphabet—the parent company—remains a multi-hundred-billion-dollar enterprise. For context, Alphabet is valued in the $500-$560 billion range, dwarfing Perplexity’s valuation. Gemini itself powers a significant portion of Alphabet’s AI strategy.

However, Perplexity’s rise in valuation—from just $520 million in early 2024 to an intended $20 billion in mid-2025—does mark remarkable progress. Still, in the race for AI dominance, the real heavyweights have already surged ahead in capital and influence.

While the Chrome offer may never materialize, the spectacle itself boosts the company’s visibility and helps frame it as a legitimate contender in the next phase of the internet’s evolution.

If successful in raising fresh capital at this valuation, Perplexity would have greater resources to accelerate its expansion, improve its AI infrastructure, and potentially fund high-profile acquisitions of its own. But the real strategic gamble may be in perception — convincing investors, talent, and the market that it is not merely another promising AI startup but a long-term platform capable of reshaping search and browsing at a global scale.