🍎 Can Apple Out-Google Google?
Apple is working on its own search engine.
Google pays Apple $15B to be the default on Apple devices.
Apple would presumably want to be the default on its own devices.
When (if?*) Apple launches its Google rival, what happens to that $15B?
It would have to be pretty confident in its ability to generate search ad revenue. And fast.
*Apple's been at it for a while and still appears to be years away. There is a chance this is all a negotiating tactic to drive up that cash injection from The Goog.
What happens if Bing gets better/bigger than Google? Would Apple put a Microsoft product as the default? Would that trigger anti-trust action?
And yes, as of now Apple has enough cash that dropping Google and its money in favor of its own "privacy friendly" alternative (probably) won't trigger an existential crisis.