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Random freezes, missing sound and display glitches usually trace back to one bad driver. Find and replace yours safely.Free scan · under a minuteEncyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. and Merriam-Webster, Inc. sued Perplexity AI, Inc. in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on September 10, 2025. The plaintiffs allege that Perplexity’s answer-engine service infringes their copyrights and trademarks. Those are disputed allegations, not a court finding that Perplexity is liable.
Case snapshot
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| Plaintiffs | Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc. and Merriam-Webster, Inc. |
| Defendant | Perplexity AI, Inc. |
| Court | U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York |
| Filed | September 10, 2025 |
| Case number | 1:25-cv-07546 |
| Claims described publicly | Copyright and trademark infringement |
| Latest reviewed substantive order | September 2, 2026 discovery order |
Why are Britannica and Merriam-Webster suing Perplexity?
The complaint alleges that Perplexity uses and presents the publishers’ content and brands through its answer-engine service in ways that infringe intellectual-property rights. Britannica’s public announcement characterized the dispute as involving answers that allegedly reproduce Britannica material. Britannica Group CEO Jorge Cauz said: “Perplexity claims to be the ‘world’s first answer engine’ but the answers they provide to consumers are often Britannica’s answers.” That statement represents Britannica’s position, not an independent judicial finding.
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The public materials reviewed do not establish the precise legal test the court will ultimately apply to every alleged use, nor do they establish that any challenged output is infringing. The claims remain contested.
What has happened in the case?
Complaint and early motion practice
The companies filed the federal action on September 10, 2025. Perplexity filed a motion to dismiss on November 3, 2025, and a reply on December 15, 2025. A case-management order followed on December 17, 2025. The reviewed docket information does not establish whether the motion to dismiss was granted, denied, or otherwise resolved.
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September 2026 discovery ruling
On September 2, 2026, the court granted part and denied part of the plaintiffs’ discovery request. The order requires Perplexity to provide one additional retrieval-augmented-generation (RAG) snapshot, with the parties to agree on the relevant date or period. It also requires Perplexity to host six months of user-activity log data covering August 2025 through January 2026. Britannica and Merriam-Webster must contribute up to $6,000 per month toward hosting those logs.
This ruling concerns evidence collection and cost allocation. It does not decide whether Perplexity infringed copyright or trademarks, and it does not award damages or impose a remedy.
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Scheduled status conference
An August 26 order scheduled a discovery-status conference for September 8, 2026. The materials available for this article do not verify what occurred at that conference or whether later orders were entered. Because docket activity can change quickly, readers should treat the procedural description above as current only through the latest order reviewed on September 2, 2026.
What does the lawsuit accuse Perplexity of?
- Copyright infringement: The plaintiffs allege that Perplexity’s service uses or presents protected Britannica and Merriam-Webster material without authorization.
- Trademark infringement: The plaintiffs also allege improper use or presentation of their brand names and marks.
- Answer-engine presentation: The dispute concerns how content is retrieved and displayed in answers, not merely a conventional list of search links.
These descriptions summarize allegations in the complaint and the plaintiffs’ public announcement. They should not be read as findings that the alleged conduct occurred or violated the law.
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Has the court decided the Britannica–Perplexity case?
No final merits decision is established in the materials reviewed. The September 2, 2026 order addresses discovery, and the available docket extract does not establish a final ruling on Perplexity’s motion to dismiss, liability, damages, settlement, or other remedies. A discovery order should not be reported as a judgment for either side.
Why the discovery evidence matters
RAG snapshots can show what information a system retrieved for a particular answer at a particular time. User-activity logs can help establish how the service was used during a defined period. The court’s order therefore addresses the evidentiary record the parties may use as the case proceeds. It does not by itself prove that any retrieved text was copied unlawfully, that a trademark was used improperly, or that a user received a particular answer.
What is not established yet
- No final finding that Perplexity infringed Britannica’s or Merriam-Webster’s rights.
- No verified damages award, injunction, settlement, or licensing agreement resolving this case.
- No confirmed outcome for the September 8, 2026 discovery-status conference in the materials reviewed.
- No verified Perplexity statement responding specifically to these allegations.
What readers should watch next
The most consequential updates would be a ruling on the motion to dismiss, additional discovery orders, summary-judgment briefing, settlement activity, or a trial and final judgment. Any “current status” report should be date-stamped and checked against the federal docket because the reviewed record ends with the September 2, 2026 discovery order.
Related publishing and dictionary products
The complaint identifies Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary as a print publication. That product is connected to one of the plaintiffs but is peripheral to the lawsuit; the current edition and availability were not verified here. The case materials also do not establish that either side has entered a licensing arrangement covering retrieval, model training, generated answers, or another stage of Perplexity’s service.
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