Paytm is gearing up to launch a suite of AI-driven financial features that could become major profit drivers in the coming years, according to founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma.
The payments giant, which recently entered a partnership with AI startup Perplexity, aims to integrate advanced search capabilities into its app to improve user experience. The company is also developing a set of tools to help users better manage savings, track spending, and oversee their investment portfolios.
“We are trying to learn what people are asking and give them an AI-first experience,” Sharma said. “These features wouldn’t have been possible without a model working behind the scenes.” Some new capabilities are currently in beta, with a 2.0 version expected to roll out soon, he added.
Sharma described the partnership with Perplexity as a step toward integrating AI into payments and financial decision-making. He emphasised that Paytm’s goal is to help users make informed financial choices—whether by assessing a purchase, evaluating investment opportunities, or analysing expenses before making a payment.
“The partnership is about adding AI-first features that can become profit drivers in a year or two,” Sharma said. “AI-based products don’t require a large amount of human manpower in count but higher intelligence per human.”
Perplexity AI CEO Aravind Srinivas highlighted how integrating AI with payments could change user behaviour.
“Knowledge is supposed to be universally available and democratised to everyone,” Srinivas said.
He noted that multi-functional apps are more popular outside the West, adding, “I hope people in India like that as well, especially when you are going to buy something.”
AI-powered financial insights, he said, could help users make smarter payment decisions. “You can ask if something is worth buying, get financial insights before paying someone, or just check the markets.”
Srinivas also praised Sharma’s vision for Paytm’s AI-driven tools. “Vijay and Paytm are very forward-minded,” he said. “They want to bring the power of AI to crores of Indians without them having to pay anything.”
The companies are also exploring how Perplexity’s AI shopping feature could integrate with Paytm’s payment system. “We’re figuring out how users can pay via Paytm while shopping on Perplexity—it could be an interesting model for other payment apps and rest of the world,” Srinivas said.
Pricing for India market
On making Perplexity’s services more affordable in India—where its pro plan currently costs $20 per month—Srinivas said the team is working on localisation efforts and new pricing models.
While Paytm UPI integration isn’t yet available, he hinted that a solution could be on the way soon.
"We are figuring out a way to make the product (Perplexity) more accessible without having to pay $20 equivalent. Give us a few weeks. We work with Stripe API right now, it may be difficult to have Paytm UPI right now, but hope to figure out a way soon," said.
Further adding to this, “The point of working with Paytm is that it’s just the beginning. We want to build localisation across sectors."
Both Sharma and Srinivas stressed the importance of AI in making technology more accessible to Indian users, especially in areas like agriculture, law, and government policies.
“We hope to figure out a way where AI works in all Indian languages,” Srinivas said, adding that fact-checking capabilities will be crucial for building user trust.
The companies’ AI initiatives come at a time when India is increasingly focusing on developing its own foundational AI models. “It’s essential to have the skill set, infrastructure, and talent to compete on global benchmarks,” Srinivas said, adding that India must invest in training the next generation of AI engineers.
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