With a share of around 78 percent in September 2021, Google almost claims a monopoly position in the search engine sector. Nevertheless, some challenges like the alternative search engine dare to take on the Internet giant. The concept behind Google is simple. It’s about providing a simple answer to every question, keyword, and everything people search online. This concept is called the concept of the “true answer.”
The You search engine takes a slightly different approach. Because, unlike Google, you do not display the search results in a list. In addition, the terms privacy and data protection play a more critical role in the search.
Your Search Engine: Informative Tiles Sorted By Source
The basic principle of You is based on a summary of the Internet. Users should be able to see the most critical information about their search queries at a glance. Reading the news, looking at pictures, or writing a tweet: It should all be possible in one place. Unlike the competition, you don’t use the usual display search results in a list. Instead, a tile system is used. Each tile contains the actual content of the respective website that is linked.
The tiles are also sorted by source. For example, users can filter out all search results from Instagram when searching for cat photos. You can also scroll up and down the individual websites or tabs. In addition to the main page in the middle, there is also a bar on the left. With it, users can search for images, videos, and headlines, just like Google searches. In addition to the bar, there are also shortcuts to the internal You apps.
Possibility To Log In And Other Interfaces
When using the search engine, it becomes clear what exactly is behind it. For example, when you search for “Linux,” You suggest suitable technical entries from GitHub and Stack Overflow relatively high up. Accordingly, these tiles are highlighted, and users quickly access the necessary information. In addition, You offers the possibility to connect user accounts with the You apps in several places.
For example, if users log into GitHub, an artificial intelligence (AI) shows suggestions for suitable repos and issues during the search. So you work with an AI responsible for the correct arrangement of the results. The mixture of interfaces for finance, news articles, developer tools, and over 100 You apps ensure a clear search result.
Data Protection, CO2 Neutrality, And Freedom From Advertising As Guiding Principles
The developer of You, Richard Socher, sees his search engine as a competitor to Google. In addition to the intelligent search mentioned above, the protection of user data is an advantage of the application. You promise never to sell its users’ data to other companies. In addition, users can choose whether they want a personalized or completely private search experience.
In the second case, the company does not store any user data. In addition, the entire search process is climate-neutral. Users do not see any ads. The sales generated by the start-up are mainly based on cooperation. According to You, these do not affect the search result.
Conclusion: Great Potential, But Still In Development
A significant disadvantage is that the search engine is unavailable in languages other than English. You said that the company is still a tiny start-up that can only support the English language. An expansion to other regions is planned. In addition, the search engine is still in the beta phase.
However, if the company manages to support additional languages and fix a few bugs, it could well be a serious alternative to Google. Because: The combination of an attractive design (subject to a dark mode), the climate-neutral search process, and the topic of data protection, which is particularly important to you, is probably not available with any other search engine provider.
Also Read: Google Maps: The Hidden Functions
