Google searches in Apple’s Safari fall for first time in 22 years

/dans

Searches on Apple’s Safari browser declined for the first time last month, and Apple’s senior vice president of services Eddy Cue blamed AI. “That has never happened in 22 years,” according to Cue.

“People are using AI,” Cue testified Wednesday during the DOJ’s antitrust trial against Google, calling it a fundamental shift that’s eating into traditional search’s dominance.

AI search rising. Apple is exploring a revamp of Safari to prioritize AI-powered search engines, Cue testified.

  • AI search tools like OpenAI, Perplexity, and Anthropic are being seriously evaluated, though they aren’t yet ready to be defaults, Cue said.
  • “There is much greater potential. They’re attacking the problem in a different way,” he said.

Why we care. AI has forever changed search. The decline in Safari searches could signal a behavioral shift that you shouldn’t ignore – because it could have massive implications for your future search and discoverability strategies.

Yes, but. Despite the excitement around AI, Google remains the default search engine for Safari. Cue said he’s lost sleep over the risk of losing the Google deal, which at an estimated $19 billion is still the most lucrative arrangement Apple has.

And another yes, but. Let’s not forget that Google is also an AI search engine – AI Overviews are seen by 1.5 billion users a month and sit on top of many of the 5 trillion searches conducted annually on Google. ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Claude combined remain barely a blip in terms of search share. You’d be well advised not to plan Google’s funeral before it dies.

The big picture. Apple offers ChatGPT via Siri. It could add Google’s Gemini this year.

  • Cue confirmed a behind-the-scenes “bake-off” between Google and OpenAI last year – one Google lost due to unacceptable terms.
  • Even if AI search tools lack strong indexes, Cue said their features are “so much better that people will switch” from standard search to AI search.

Zoom out. AI is a paradigm shift, similar to the advent of the iPhone, Cue said:

  • “You may not need an iPhone 10 years from now, as crazy as it sounds.”

More coverage. See Techmeme.