Meta is building its own AI search engine to ditch Google and Bing

Meta is tired of relying on its fiercest rivals to answer user questions.

According to a report from The Information, the social media giant is developing its own AI-powered search engine. A dedicated engineering team has reportedly been working on the project for eight months, quietly crawling the web and building out an index of current events.

Cutting the cord from Google and Bing

Right now, when you ask Meta AI a question on WhatsApp, Instagram, or Facebook about current events, it leans on Google and Microsoft Bing behind the scenes to fetch real-time answers.

Meta’s planned search engine aims to change that. It will generate conversational summaries of breaking news and recent topics directly inside the Meta AI chatbot, cutting out the middleman entirely.

Meta isn’t the only one trying to break free from traditional search monopolies. OpenAI showed off its SearchGPT prototype in July with plans to bake it straight into ChatGPT, while Bloomberg reported on October 2 that Apple is actively exploring ways to replace Google search components with in-house AI features.

Meta is also patching up its relationship with publishers to fuel this engine. After years of downplaying political news and killing its dedicated News Tab, Meta announced a multiyear licensing deal with Reuters on October 25. Instead of passively pushing headlines into user feeds, Meta is shifting to a pull model where users deliberately ask AI for information.

Why it matters

For everyday users, having native search baked directly into WhatsApp and Instagram means less app-switching. You can plan trips, verify recent news, or search product specs without ever leaving your group chat.

For the tech industry, this is another direct strike against Google's search monopoly. If OpenAI, Apple, and now Meta all build independent web indexes, the traditional search bar loses its role as the undisputed front door to the internet.

We think Meta's move makes total strategic sense, but it won't be cheap. Building and maintaining a web-scale search index demands staggering compute power and storage. Meta has the cash, but it also carries massive regulatory baggage. Just this week, Brazilian consumer groups slapped Meta, TikTok, and Kwai with a $525 million lawsuit over minor safety. If Meta AI becomes an active news distributor again, hallucinations and copyright fights will inevitably put the company back in lawmakers' crosshairs.