Apple is considering reshaping the Safari web browser to focus more on AI-powered search engines, a move that could challenge Google’s dominance in the search market. Eddy Cue, an Apple executive, shared in his testimony for the U.S. Justice Department’s antitrust case against Google that Safari search activity dropped for the first time last month, a trend he believes is linked to users increasingly turning to AI-driven platforms.
Currently, Google serves as the default search engine on Safari, paying Apple around $20 billion annually for this position, which accounts for approximately 36% of Google’s search advertising revenue from Safari, as estimated by analysts.
If Apple shifts away from Google, it could create significant pressure on Google, especially with rising competition from AI companies like OpenAI and Perplexity AI. Apple has already partnered with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT into Siri, while Google is reportedly negotiating to incorporate its Gemini AI technology into Apple’s devices by mid-year.
Shares of Alphabet, Google’s parent company, dropped by 6%, while Apple’s stock fell about 2%. Neither company nor the U.S. Department of Justice commented on the matter.
Cue expressed his belief that AI-powered search engines like OpenAI and Perplexity will eventually replace traditional search engines such as Google. He suggested that Apple may introduce these alternatives in Safari, though they likely wouldn’t be set as the default options.
The potential loss of exclusivity with Apple could have severe consequences for Google, particularly in its advertising business. Many advertisers rely on Google for nearly all of their search ad spending, and if viable alternatives emerge, they could redirect their budgets away from Google.