Cristiano Ronaldo admits he turned to Perplexity AI before Prestige Globe Award speech

Cristiano Ronaldo has revealed that he relied on Perplexity AI to prepare for his Prestige Globe Award acceptance speech, admitting that he felt nervous before addressing the audience at the Portugal Football Globes. His confession has sparked widespread discussion about the growing role of artificial intelligence in everyday decision-making — even among the world’s most accomplished figures.

Speaking during the ceremony, the Portuguese footballer shared that he was unsure how to start his speech and sought help from the AI chatbot for guidance. “This afternoon I sat at the table thinking about what I would say in this speech,” Ronaldo said. “I said to myself, ‘What is the Prestige Globe Award? Is it a career-ending award?’ Then I did some research on Perplexity — if you don’t know it, look it up later — and it helped me a little.”

The comment, delivered casually, immediately went viral after Perplexity reposted the clip on X (formerly Twitter), confirming that the company had no prior collaboration with the athlete. The AI platform said it was “as surprised as everyone else” to hear Ronaldo mention using it to prepare his remarks.

Ronaldo’s admission has since become a talking point beyond football. Some praised his openness, saying it reflects how technology can support rather than replace creativity. Others saw it as a sign of growing dependence on AI, raising questions about how much humans are outsourcing their thinking to algorithms.

For Perplexity, co-founded by Indian-origin entrepreneur Aravind Srinivas, the shout-out has offered unexpected global exposure. The platform combines conversational answers with verified web citations, offering a hybrid between a search engine and an AI assistant.

Ronaldo’s confession, though brief, underscores a broader reality — even icons at the peak of their fields are turning to AI for help with moments of self-expression. And in admitting it publicly, he may have made artificial intelligence a little more human.