Apple's Potential Switch from Google to DuckDuckGo in Safari's Private Mode

Apple considered making DuckDuckGo the default search engine in Safari's private browsing mode, as an alternative to Google. DuckDuckGo CEO Gabriel Weinberg claimed that his company had multiple meetings with Apple about the possibility, but the integration did not come to fruition. Apple's SVP of machine learning and AI strategy, John Giannandrea, dismissed the switch to DuckDuckGo, citing concerns about the search engine's reliance on Bing and its marketing claims about privacy. These discussions took place in the context of the ongoing antitrust trial over Google search, where Apple's deal with Google is being scrutinized.