European search engines Qwant and Ecosia said on Wednesday that they have begun offering search queries through Staan, an index they developed together.
Last year, the search engine QWANT, which focuses on French privacy, attacked a joint venture with German non-profit search engine Ecosia to develop a European search index. The JV, known as the European Search Perspective (EUSP), aims to provide around 50% of French questions and 33% of German questions by the end of the year.
Qwant says it is using new indexes to enhance some of its features, such as search AI summary, and Ecosia also plans to add AI capabilities to its platform soon.
Eusp is in talks with businesses to encourage the adoption of indexes to allow searches within the app. It specifically targets chatbots and presents Staan as a cheaper alternative to Google and Bing.
“If you’re using chatgpt or other AI chatbots, they’re all laying the foundation of knowledge in web search […] Our indexes can drive deep research and AI summary capabilities. Google and Bing solutions are also expensive, and our indexes can provide power search capabilities at a tenth of the cost,” Ecosia CEO Christian Kroll told TechCrunch.
Eusp, like Proton, is driving the development of a European technology stack that is independent of US or Chinese technology.
“Timing wasn’t that urgent. The results of the 2024 US election reminded European policymakers and innovators of how Europe is exposed to the core of digital infrastructure.
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Through this index, Kroll added that, in combination with European privacy laws, the EUSP can provide a more privacy-friendly search solution compared to its US counterparts.
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