European Google rivals partner on search engine infrastructure to counter Big Tech

LISBON, Portugal — Ecosia and Qwant, 2 hunt engines competing with Google, announced a concern Tuesday to physique a European hunt scale and trim their dependence connected U.S. Big Tech firms.

The 2 net hunt firms agreed a associated venture, called the European Search Perspective oregon EUSP, with ownership divided 50-50 betwixt some firms. With a presumption to motorboat successful France successful aboriginal 2025, the task aims to service "improved" French and German connection hunt results.

Ecosia is based successful Berlin, portion Qwant is headquartered successful Paris. Qwant is simply a privacy-focused hunt motor that promises not to way users oregon resell their idiosyncratic data. Ecosia's hunt motor focuses connected sustainability, pledging to plant one histrion for each 50 searches connected its platform.

Search infrastructure is what powers our entree to the web, but it's presently chiefly controlled by Google, the ascendant hunt motor with a much than 90% stock of the planetary market. Even alternate hunt engines, specified arsenic Ecosia and Qwant, person to trust connected existing tech from companies similar Microsoft to present hunt results. 

Christian Kroll, CEO of Ecosia, told CNBC the task had been made possible, successful part, by caller tech-focused contention rules successful the European Union. The Digital Markets Act, which came into unit earlier this year, requires Big Tech firms it calls "gatekeepers" to connection just and tenable entree to their platforms.

In Google's case, the institution is required nether the DMA to stock information that would beryllium utile for grooming a hunt model.

Currently, alternate hunt engines similar Ecosia, Qwant and DuckDuckGo don't make their ain back-end infrastructure. The caller task volition spot them physique their ain hunt scale from scratch, however, amassing results from a premix of antithetic hunt engines. Ecosia past twelvemonth switched to a premix of Google and Bing hunt results. 

Ecosia and Qwant accidental their caller hunt scale volition beryllium "privacy-first," utilizing technologies from Qwant that were redesigned successful 2023. Both companies volition usage the hunt scale themselves but the tech volition besides beryllium made disposable to different autarkic hunt engines and tech firms.

The motorboat comes arsenic alternate hunt providers similar Ecosia and Qwant are being forced to grapple with higher prices from Microsoft to entree its Bing Search API (application programming interface), a portion of bundle that lets developers entree the tech giant's backend hunt infrastructure.

"We are European companies and we request to physique exertion that makes definite nary third-party determination — for instance, Microsoft's determination to summation costs to entree their hunt API — could jeopardize our business," Olivier Abecassis, CEO of Qwant, told CNBC.

"It is thing against the U.S. oregon U.S. companies. It is each astir the sovereignty of our concern and companies," helium added. Abecassis volition besides service arsenic CEO of the caller venture, which hasn't yet raised backing from outer investors.

Europeans are "very babelike connected the United States for our technology," Kroll said successful an interrogation past week up of the launch. The predetermination of Donald Trump arsenic U.S. president could escalate geopolitical tensions, helium added — and this could beryllium a occupation for Europe's reliance connected U.S. technology.

He pointed to the disruption to European vigor supplies aft Russia chopped disconnected state to Europe pursuing its penetration of Ukraine, saying this should service arsenic a informing for what tin hap erstwhile an full continent becomes excessively babelike connected a azygous state for a cardinal resource.

Part of Ecosia and Qwant's propulsion to physique a hunt motor from scratch volition beryllium to connection a "transparent and unafraid information pool" for caller AI technologies, according to the companies.

Search providers whitethorn get "more restrictive" successful future, fixed the displacement toward generative AI, Ecosia's Kroll told CNBC.

"They cognize they're sitting connected a precise important assets for this paradigm shift," helium said. "Yes, you request ample connection models to person bully chatbots. But you besides request entree to a bully index."

The emergence of OpenAI's ChatGPT has enactment unit connected incumbent hunt elephantine Google, arsenic radical progressively crook to the viral chatbot to hunt for information.

Meanwhile, a slew of caller hunt engines, specified arsenic Perplexity, person besides entered the market, offering their ain generative-AI-based alternatives to Google.

Google has fought backmost with its ain generative AI hunt product, integrating its Gemini ample connection exemplary into hunt results.