(Side-note: I’ve been interested in writing this post for about two years now. Every few months I feel I should write it before Apple actually ships such a feature. Finally the post’s done!)
How does iOS reduce its dependence on web search from Google or Bing? Simple, syndicate Spotlight searches to installed apps.
Introducing Spotlight for Apps
Imagine if every iOS app could implement a ‘search’ capability, that would be exposed to 
the iOS search subsystem. This search could be over local data, e.g. Address Book-like applications; over remote data, e.g. Wikipedia; or over either, e.g. Mail.
Your favorite content sources (like Yelp), content aggregators (like Flipboard or New York Times) and even crowdsourced information aggregators (like, hey, Twitter and Facebook) already reside as apps on your iOS device. Any search you’re interested in doing would hit these apps first – and would probably show the information you care for right at the top.
@akumar overflow 