Neeva shuts down search engine and pivots to AI technology

Neeva, a startup that aimed to challenge the dominance of Google Search, has made the decision to shut down its search engine.

The company announced the news on Saturday, expressing a shift towards artificial intelligence and the possibility of being acquired by Snowflake, according to The Information.

In a blog post announcing the shutdown, Neeva co-founders Sridhar Ramaswamy and Vivek Raghunathan admitted the challenges of building a search engine and persuading users to adopt an alternative choice. They highlighted the uphill battle faced by any new search engine, from Google's default deals to the complexities of changing default browser or search engine settings. Neeva also grappled with being a paid product, aiming to offer a better user experience without relying on ads and surveillance.

Interestingly, Neeva's closure comes at a time when there is growing dissatisfaction with Google's ad load and search results, and alternative search engines are gaining attention.

Neeva's search engine will cease operations on June 2, and the company will refund users for unused subscriptions and delete all user data.