When the DoJ launched a lawsuit against Google, the company was quick to ridicule it, citing the example of Apple, saying that the company prefers to use Google’s search engine simply because it’s the ‘best.’ However, who could have guessed at that time that Apple will be planning a coup d’etat, secretly developing its own tool to compete with Google’s. According to a report from Financial Times, Apple is looking to fight off Google’s monopoly, by developing its own search tool.
With the launch of iOS 14, Apple has taken some sneaky but still, quite important steps, to present itself as a competitor in the search market. With the new OS, the company shows its own search results and links directly to websites when users type queries from its home screen.
Now, according to sources that talked to Financial Times, the change marks a big step towards Apple’s push into the search market, seeking to put a dent in Google’s monopoly. While someone trying to challenge Google when it comes to the search market would usually be a good thing. However, Apple already has a significant presence in the technology sphere, and an in house search tool will allow the company to steer off even further from the competition. This is especially bad when Apple is concerned, since the company already has a seperate ecosystem.
Apple certainly has the expertise, as it had hired Google’s Search and Artificial Intelligence chief John Giannandrea, who is now Senior VP or Machine Learning and AI Strategy at the company.
However, there’s another very probable reason for this change. The company could just as well be looking to make Siri a one stop shop when it comes to searching things, reducing the AI’s reliance on other search engines like Google and Bing. This will be in line with the competition, as Google Assistant already provides this service.
Nonetheless, whatever Apple’s intention are, the move seems to have resulted in an uptick in activity, which is certainly not a good sign for Google. The Cupertino based tech giant pays as much as $10-$12 billion to Google to be the main search provider on Apple devices, but the deal is about to expire soon. Thus, if Apple were to make a move from Google, this will be the perfect time, especially with the DoJ lawsuit.
