The Challenge
How do I help users get faster, more relevant answers that feel private, contextual, and seamlessly integrated with their Apple ecosystem without overwhelming them with cluttered results or compromising their privacy?
Learning to get faster, smarter answers with a search engine that understands your world and respects your privacy.
Apple Search is a privacy first search engine that understands your world. Context aware and deeply integrated, it delivers smarter answers by connecting to your apps, calendar, and location without tracking you. Built for everyday tasks, it helps you find what you need faster, with results that actually make sense.
Search that adapts to you
Many users rely on different tools, but search often ignores how they actually work. By integrating third-party plugins, our search adapts to your ecosystem helping you find what matters, faster.
Deeply Apple, by design
Many tools feel disconnected from the apps people use every day. By syncing with Calendar, Mail, and Maps, our search feels naturally part of your Apple world not something added on.
Clarity at a glance
Browsing through endless links slows you down and clutters your focus. By grouping results into clear categories, our search helps you scan less and find faster.
• Conclusion
Learnings and Future Plans
This project began as a fun, self-initiated exploration a way to stretch my creative thinking and reimagine something as everyday as search. At its core was a simple question: What if search felt more intuitive, more contextual and more respectful of the user?
As I Designed, I reflected on how people interact with information when time is short, attention is fragmented, and privacy matters more than ever. Instead of designing for ideal use cases, I focused on real ones cluttered results, disconnected tools, and growing frustration with noisy, impersonal search experiences.
What this project reinforced for me is that thoughtful design isn’t just about delivering answers it’s about making users feel understood, supported, and in control. And sometimes, it’s the playful, creative projects that help us rediscover what purposeful design can truly mean.
Future Plans
Looking ahead, I’m excited to explore how search can evolve beyond a cluttered list of sponsored links and irrelevant noise. There’s an opportunity to create a calmer, more trusted way to engage with information one that feels intuitive, context-aware, and deeply respectful of privacy. With thoughtful design, even small moments can reshape how we search and how confidently we move through the digital world.
Thank you:)
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Explorations in Design
We placed a privacy first search bar at the top with Calendar, Reddit, and ChatGPT plugin shortcuts just below for instant, personalized entry points. A smart-answer banner surfaces your calendar events first, then left-aligned Reddit and ChatGPT cards follow the natural F- reading pattern, balanced by a stock widget on the right. Subtle outlines, consistent padding, and spacing create clear hierarchy, while iterative user testing refined placement and grouping for rich context in an uncluttered, scannable layout.
We lead users smoothly from inline suggestions (“Taylor Swift – Entertainment,” etc.) to a warm, highlighted info card complete with avatar, bio, and “More on Wikipedia” so they feel seen and get trusted context instantly. Keeping the suggestions list below lets them explore without losing their place. Subtle outlines, consistent spacing, and refined tap targets (informed by testing) create a calm, focused flow that tells them exactly where to look next.
We leveraged Spotlight so users can search for travel without leaving their desktop, bypassing friction and cognitive load. At the top, plugin icons and an Airbnb carousel surface instant options, while a “Reviews Now” plugin below provides timely, human-driven context. This lightweight overlay respects existing workflows and empathises with time-pressed travellers who need trusted recommendations fast.
Every aspect of this Apple search engine is a deliberate blend of Apple’s design ethos and a deep understanding of user context and privacy. Though we iterated through many prototypes, there were pivotal moments where empathy steered critical decisions transforming a simple search bar into a seamless, context aware experience. I’d love to walk you through those defining moments.
• The Solution
Apple Search Engine
Project Role
UI designer
Duration
2 Weeks
The Project
Many users feel frustrated with search engines that return cluttered results and miss context. Most ignore the useful data already in calendars, emails, and apps while also compromising on privacy. For Apple users, search often feels impersonal, intrusive, and disconnected from their ecosystem.
What if Apple got into the Search Engine Business? With AI changing the landscape for Search engines there's a huge opportunity and gap in the market.
