Apple Explains Why it won’t Create Rival Search Engine to Google

Apple’s Senior Vice President and Chief Executive, Eddy Cue, has stated that the business will never develop a search engine. He affirmed that the iPhone maker has no plans to establish a search engine similar to Google Search. His statement came amid an ongoing antitrust action against Google.

In a declaration filed with a US federal court, Apple’s CEO explained three reasons why the company would never develop a search engine. In his remark, Cue stated that developing a web browser would cost the corporation billions of dollars and take a long time. It would also need the corporation devoting resources to the project, diverting attention away from its core development areas. 

The Apple executive also stated that search is constantly shifting due to recent advances in artificial intelligence (AI), and establishing a separate search engine would be a hazardous commercial venture. “…search is rapidly evolving as a result of recent and ongoing advances in artificial intelligence.” That makes it economically dangerous to devote the massive resources required to construct a search engine,” Cue stated in his written statement to the court, which was originally reported by Reuters.

The third argument given by the Apple executive for not developing its own search engine is targeted advertising. Cue stated that developing a search engine would necessitate the creation of a platform dedicated to selling targeted advertising, which is not part of the company’s primary business. “Apple does not have the volume of specialized professionals and significant operational infrastructure needed to build and run a successful search advertising business,” Cue stated in his written statement to the court.

Finally, the Apple official stated that developing a search advertising business would require the corporation to strike a balance ‘against Apple’s strong privacy commitment’.

Cue’s statement came at a time when the company requested to participate in Google‘s ongoing Search antitrust litigation in the United States. Among other things, the trial focuses on Google’s revenue-sharing agreements with companies such as Apple for making Search the default search engine in their web browsers.

Earlier this year, as part of the US Department of Justice’s antitrust prosecution against Google, the court ruled that the agreement establishing Google as the default search engine in Apple’s web browser Safari is illegal. In his declaration, Cue requested that the court enable Apple to defend the contract by having its own witnesses testify at the trial.

“Only Apple can speak to what kinds of future collaborations can best serve its users,” Cue said in a statement. “Apple is relentlessly focused on creating the best user experience possible and explores potential partnerships and arrangements with other companies to make that happen.”

As part of the agreement, Cue said that Google paid Apple almost $20 billion in 2022 alone.

If the agreement is no longer valid, Cue stated that “it would hamstring Apple’s ability to continue delivering products that best serve its users’ needs.”

This was initially disclosed by Reuters.