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Ecosia and Qwant create a European research index to challenge the Big tech
The new joint venture aims to reduce addiction to Google and Microsoft, focusing on privacy, ai and technological autonomy for Europe
Isabella V12 November 2024

 

Ecosia and Qwant, two European search engines engaged in privacy and innovation, combine forces to develop an independent research index, thus reducing addiction to Google and Microsoft. The new initiative aims to strengthen European technological self -sufficiency, focusing on generative AI and users’ privacy.

Key points:

  • Ecosia and Qwant collaborate to develop a new European research index, reducing addiction to Google and Microsoft.
  • The initiative aims to integrate the generative to improve the research experience.
  • The privacy and sovereignty of data are crucial aspects of new technology.
  • The project involves opening to further partnerships with other European companies for greater development.

Ecosia and Qwant, two emerging actors in the panorama of European search engines, have announced a strategic partnership that will create an independent search index, marking a significant move towards the reduction of dependence on great technologies such as Google and Microsoft. Both companies, operating on different principles than the giants in the sector, intend to create an alternative that respects users’ privacy more and better responds to local needs, both from a technological and geopolitical point of view. This agreement not only has the aim of reducing the costs deriving from the use of Bing and Google bees, but also to build a solid European infrastructure that respects the sovereignty of data and promotes innovation in generative AI (Genai). With the increase in costs for access to Bing and Google bees, the decision to develop an independent research index appears as an inevitable choice for these engines, which are facing increasingly complex economic and political challenges. The idea of ​​a completely independent index, managed by a European entity, aims to encourage a more sustainable and resilient technological ecosystem, far from the influence of global giants. Although the partnership between Ecosia and Qwant will not completely eliminate the use of Bing and Google bees, the new project, called the European Search Perspective (Eup), intends to evolve in a platform that will not only serve their respective users in France and Germany, But also other European companies that wish to move away from the sphere of influence of Big Tech.

Both companies have already experienced the integration of AI in their services, but with EUP there is a significant leap in the use of genai technologies. Ecosia, with its non-profit approach and the commitment for the climate, will bring to the joint venture its experience in managing projects with high social and environmental impact, while QWant, focused on privacy and self-sufficiency, will contribute with technical skills advanced in the management of a decentralized search engine. The goal is to build a research system that not only returns more relevant and diversified results, but that does not resort to the customization of the results on the basis of user data, as Google and Bing do. This approach, which emphasizes privacy, is one of the distinctive aspects of the EUP index, which wants to offer European users a more transparent and safe alternative than the business models based on the profiling and monetization of data. At a time when European regulations such as the Digital Markets Act (DMA) place greater emphasis on the protection of privacy and the fight against technological monopolies, the initiative is perfectly part of the regulatory context that pushes for greater technological autonomy of Europe.

The creation of a completely independent research index, however, represents a complex and expensive challenge, as evidenced by the experience of other companies such as Brave, which has recently developed its research index by eliminating dependence on Bing. The construction of a research index from zero requires enormous resources in terms of infrastructure, hardware, software and above all access to a significant amount of data. In addition, the growing attention to the use of AI to improve the quality of the search results has increased the competition, since advanced linguistic models require large quantities of information to be effectively trained. In order to offer relevant results, a search engine must in fact access a large number of sources, a difficulty that has intensified in a context in which many platforms, including those of Google and Microsoft, are limiting the access of the bots of Search for their pages to protect their economic interests. Yet, despite these difficulties, the Eup project has the ambition to offer an alternative to the "censorship" of the results that occurs in environments dominated by a few global actors.

From a strategic point of view, the initiative also has significant geopolitical implications. The creation of an autonomous research infrastructure in Europe responds to growing concern regarding digital sovereignty and risks related to dependence on foreign technologies. In an era of growing geopolitical instability, Europe may have to deal with a possible scenario in which access to data or research services can be hindered by external actors. The partnership between Ecosia and Qwant therefore fits into a long -term vision that aims to guarantee greater technological independence for the European Union, defending the rights of users and reducing the monopolistic power of the large platforms.

Finally, the prospect of firing the new research index to other European companies represents a strategic move that could help make the initiative even more solid, thanks to the creation of a partner ecosystem that can benefit from developed technology. With the desire to expand on a linguistic and geographical level, the EUP index could cover a significant portion of research trafficking in Europe within the next few years, gradually extending its scope also to non -French -speaking languages ​​and markets or Germanophones.

While the Ecosia and Qwant project develops, it places itself as an interesting proposal for a future in which Europe can recover control over its digital infrastructure, while promoting innovation and privacy in a sector increasingly dominated by a few, large multinationals.