Apple · last updated 2026-10-14
Apple Siri and Spotlight web answers
Apple's Siri and Spotlight can answer questions using web content. Apple documents that Applebot, its web crawler, is used for Siri and Search answers that include links to sources. Applebot-Extended is a separate control that lets sites opt out of having their content used to train Apple's foundation models; it does not crawl.
Grounding model
Applebot crawls the web for Siri and Spotlight (Search) answers. Applebot-Extended does not crawl; it only signals a training opt-out. The `nosnippet` directive opts content out of these answers. Not documented by Apple: the model or index details behind retrieval.
Citation style
Answers with links. Not documented by Apple: any further layout detail.
What it rewards
- Being crawlable by Applebot, the crawler Apple documents for Siri and Search answers
- Pages that allow snippets (no nosnippet directive)
- Not documented by Apple: other ranking or selection factors
What it penalizes
- Pages that disallow Applebot or use `nosnippet` (Apple documents these as opt-outs)
- Not documented by Apple: other penalties