Perplexity’s Biggest Ad Yet Pits Its AI Search Against ‘Poogle’—and Lee Jung-jae Picks a Side

Perplexity is making its biggest marketing bet yet.

The AI search startup has launched its first celebrity-led ad campaign, starring Squid Game actor Lee Jung-jae, in a mid-seven-figure buy across major streaming platforms.

The 90-second ad spot, filmed in Korea, takes a playful jab at Google, dubbed “Poogle” in the ad.

Jung-jae, caught in a Squid Game-like scenario, is trapped in a room with three pressing questions. He first turns to Poogle for answers but is instead shown a list of links. Panicked, he then asks Perplexity—using its voice model—how to remove coffee stains from a white shirt and immediately receives a clear, step-by-step process that helps him escape. Another scene sees him ask, “How do I make cheese stick to pizza?” to which Perplexity quips, “Don’t use glue.”

Future content will show how Jung-jae uses Perplexity in daily life.

The ad marks the beginning of a yearlong partnership between Perplexity and Jung-jae’s management company, Artist United. The firm, which Jung-jae co-owns, has integrated Perplexity’s enterprise pro tier into its workflows for research, drafting, and API-based integration. Perplexity’s chief business officer, Dmitry Shevelenko, told ADWEEK that this was a natural extension of the partnership rather than a cost-offsetting tactic.

“This is a major ad purchase for us,” Shevelenko added.

The timing of the campaign is strategic. Netflix is expected to release Squid Game’s third season in June, giving Perplexity an opportunity to cement itself as a mainstream consumer brand. The startup—now valued at $9 billion—has expanded its product suite, launching an Android assistant, enhancing voice capabilities, and even dabbling in an AI-driven browser, Comet.

“We think you unlock a critical threshold of utility where it’s not just Perplexity is for tech early adopters, it truly is for everyone,” Shevelenko said. “It’s a natural evolution of becoming a staple consumer brand.”

Perplexity currently fields over 20 million queries per day and is aiming to hit 100 million daily searches within the next year.

The ad begins running today in the U.S. before expanding to Korea, Japan, and Europe over the next 10 days. It will air on Amazon Prime, Twitch, Tubi, Disney, and Hulu. Each market will see a localized version—Jung-jae speaks in Korean throughout, while on-screen text and voiceovers will be adapted to the region. Perplexity currently supports 10 languages, including Korean, French, Spanish, and German.

The creative was developed in-house with support from ad agency Sandwich, though Perplexity doesn’t have an official agency of record. Universal McCann is overseeing the social media buy, while Perplexity is managing all streaming placements internally.

Perplexity used its own product to brainstorm elements of the ad, while video production remained human-led, Shevelenko said.