Apple plans to add support for third-party AI-powered search services such as Perplexity and Anthropic to its Safari browser for iPhone, iPad and Mac, Apple’s senior vice president of online services Eddy Cue said during a court hearing in the Google search monopoly case. He also added that such services will likely not be used by default in Safari.
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Cue also reported that in April of this year, Safari searches fell for the first time ever, which he said indicates that users are increasingly turning to AI tools that act as alternatives to standard search engines.
Apple’s current deal with Google means the iPhone maker gets a cut of the advertising revenue from search queries. So when search volume drops, Apple gets less money. In addition, another deal between the companies, which makes Google the default search engine in Safari, is under threat because of an ongoing lawsuit over Google’s online advertising monopoly.
Apple currently makes about $20 billion a year thanks to Google being the default search engine on its devices. Interestingly, Cue’s recent appearance took place in a courtroom where a case could be heard that could result in the Apple-Google deal being broken.
It’s also worth noting that Apple is increasingly relying on third-party developments to support key AI features on its devices. The iPhone maker is already partnering with OpenAI to expand the capabilities of its Siri voice assistant. As part of this partnership, OpenAI is expected to provide Apple with free access to ChatGPT in exchange for advertising the company’s services.
But to add any AI search engine to Safari, the company appears to want a revenue-sharing deal equivalent to its current pact with Google, although Cue said AI search providers need to improve their offerings to be more competitive with Google.