Google has been spending a significant amount each year to secure its position as the default search engine on iOS, with reports suggesting an expenditure of up to $20 billion. However, with growing antitrust scrutiny, the company is now focused on getting iPhone users to use its apps instead. Despite efforts to increase the number of searches through its own apps, Google is reportedly facing challenges in achieving this goal. While there has been some progress, with around 30% of Google Search queries on iPhone coming from its apps, the company aims to reach 50%. Google considered tactics like locking AI-powered features to its apps but ultimately decided against it. Additionally, a project to allow users to upload short videos to the Google app for direct search results struggled to take off. Google is navigating a complex landscape as it seeks to maintain its dominance on iOS devices.