How Foundry advertises the AI-supported search engine Perplexity

What would a child of Google Search and ChatGPT look like? If we take the billion-dollar valuation as a yardstick, the answer is Perplexity AI. Founded in 2022 by former Google and Open AI employees frustrated with the wasted potential of their platforms, Perplexity focuses on delivering knowledge in its simplest, clearest and most credible form.

For the official launch of the platform in Europe, the billion-dollar AI start-up was looking for a campaign that - like Perplexity - would arouse curiosity and a spirit of discovery. "At Perplexity, we believe that advertising can inspire people's curiosity and spirit of discovery in different ways," says Dmitry Shevelenko, Chief Business Officer at Perplexity. "With our campaign in Germany, we want to invite people to try Perplexity first-hand."

Foundry, the global creative agency with offices in Berlin, Zurich and New York, was chosen as the lead creative agency for the conception and implementation of the multichannel campaigns as well as for hyperlocal media planning and media buying. To bring the essence of Perplexity to life, Foundry conceptualized a nationwide campaign built on the ultimate form of curiosity: good questions. Together with Perplexity, Foundry developed questions tailored to different target groups, covering topics such as history, food, culture and football - a timely choice given the imminent start of the European Championship.

To take full advantage of the biggest event in European football, the German team's top footballers - Marc-André ter Stegen and Niclas Füllkrug - were also engaged to provide fans with tricky questions on social media.

Analog and digital

The campaign will be brought to life in the digital and physical world, with well-placed digital billboards in high-traffic locations first in Berlin and Munich, including public transportation hubs where viewers can easily access and interact with the ads. Berliners might come across questions such as "Why does Rosenthaler Platz subway station have radioactive tiles?" or "Where can I go if I'm turned away at Berghain?" In Munich, the question could be: "How did 600,000 barrels of beer save Munich?"

Each placement contains a unique QR code that viewers can scan to find specific answers directly on Perplexity. The current TV spot in the US and the German campaign are Perplexity.ai's first two active advertising initiatives. With this in mind, Foundry is working closely with Perplexity's design team to create the German campaign with the
visual direction of the brand. The collaboration is long-term, with plans for future initiatives that build on the campaign.