In the latest developments of tech giant Meta, the company is secretly developing a search engine designed specifically for its AI chatbots. This strategy adjustment aims to reduce reliance on Google and Microsoft, while improving technology autonomy to address challenges brought about by changes in Apple's privacy policy.
According to the latest report from The Information, Meta is quietly advancing an ambitious plan: developing exclusive search engines for its AI chatbots. Behind this strategic turn is Meta's profound reflection on the significant losses caused by Apple's privacy policy changes.
Meta's search engine project has been secretly underway for at least 8 months. The company hopes to get rid of its dependence on Google search and Microsoft Bing by integrating web indexes into Meta AI. Although Meta has publicly disclosed its web crawler technology this summer, it was only generally stated at the time for "AI model training and product improvement". Currently, the project is led by Xueyuan Su, senior engineering manager.
This move is closely related to Meta's previous "pain". In 2021, Apple's App Tracking Transparency (ATT) feature launched by Apple has caused Meta to lose more than $10 billion in advertising revenue. To avoid similar situations from happening again, Zuckerberg is clearly determined to enhance the company's technological autonomy. In addition, Meta has reached a partnership with Reuters to enhance its AI's capabilities in news Q&A.
It is worth noting that Meta's AI business is developing strongly. According to Zuckerberg on Threads, Meta AI currently has 185 million weekly active users and more than 400 million monthly active users. This data is particularly eye-catching, as the service has not yet been launched in important markets such as the UK, Brazil and the EU. By comparison, competitor OpenAI has 250 million active users on ChatGPT.
It is not clear whether Meta needs to pay Google or Microsoft for search access, but the game between tech giants has begun. Meta's strategic transformation not only reflects its pursuit of technological autonomy, but also indicates that the competitive landscape in the AI field may usher in new changes.
Meta's new initiative not only demonstrates its ambitions in the field of AI technology, but also may redefine the future search market landscape.