Perplexity AI experienced a major outage on October 20, 2025, with CEO Aravind Srinivas attributing the disruption to an Amazon Web Services (AWS) issue. The AI search platform went offline alongside dozens of major websites and apps, affecting millions of users globally including India.
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AWS Outage Impact: Services Affected
| Category | Affected Services |
|---|---|
| AI Platforms | Perplexity AI, ChatGPT |
| Gaming | Fortnite, Roblox, Clash Royale, Clash of Clans |
| Social Media | Snapchat, Signal |
| Finance | Coinbase, Robinhood, Venmo, Chime |
| Amazon Services | Prime Video, Alexa, Amazon Shopping |
| Other Platforms | Canva, Duolingo, Lyft, McDonald’s app |
Aravind Srinivas Confirms AWS as Root Cause
Perplexity CEO Aravind Srinivas took to X (formerly Twitter) stating: “Perplexity is down right now. The root cause is an AWS issue. We’re working on resolving it.” Indian users reported significant delays in query processing, rendering the AI search platform unusable during peak hours.
Over 1,000 reports emerged from India on Downdetector, with users across gaming, education, design, and social media platforms experiencing widespread disruptions. The outage began around noon IST and lasted several hours.
AWS US-EAST-1 Region Triggers Global Chaos
AWS acknowledged “significant error rates” related to DNS resolution of the DynamoDB API endpoint in the US-EAST-1 Region. This critical infrastructure hub powers countless global services, meaning localized issues cascaded worldwide.
AWS reported increased error rates and latencies across multiple services, with 75 AWS and Amazon services affected including AWS Systems Manager, Network Firewall, and the Support Centre. By 11:35 AM, AWS reported that the underlying DNS issue had been fully mitigated.
India Heavily Impacted by Outage
While the outage originated in the US, it affected Indian users due to AWS’s global backbone. Popular platforms like Roblox, Snapchat, Canva, and Perplexity saw major disruptions in India, affecting students, professionals, and gamers alike.
The incident underscores the dependence of modern digital services on cloud infrastructure. Experts warn that such disruptions can have cascading effects on commerce, finance, and digital services.
Lessons from the AWS Outage
This marks yet another reminder that centralized cloud infrastructure creates single points of failure. When AWS struggles, half the internet follows. Companies relying solely on one cloud provider face significant vulnerability.
For real-time updates on tech outages and cloud infrastructure news, stay connected with our technology coverage.
FAQs
Why was Perplexity down in India?
Perplexity went offline due to an AWS outage affecting the US-EAST-1 region.
How long did the AWS outage last?
The outage began around noon IST and was largely resolved by late afternoon.
