Beyond ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity, Copilot and Claude, two assistants reach very large audiences in India: Meta AI, built into WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook, and Apple’s Siri with Apple Intelligence on iPhones. Meta has said Meta AI draws on real-time search results from partners including Google and Bing, and Apple’s Siri can hand questions to ChatGPT and uses Apple’s own crawler, Applebot, for search features. For businesses, the practical steps are the same foundations as elsewhere: be well indexed in the major search engines, allow the relevant crawlers, keep business listings accurate, and publish clear answers.
Meta AI
Meta AI is available in WhatsApp, Instagram, Facebook and Messenger, and launched in India in English in 2024. When Meta introduced its assistant widely in 2024, it said real-time answers would include search results from Google and Bing. Meta also documents its own user agents:
| User agent | Purpose, as Meta describes it |
|---|---|
| Meta-ExternalAgent | Crawling for uses such as training AI models or improving products |
| Meta-ExternalFetcher | Fetching individual links on behalf of users, for example when a link is shared |
| facebookexternalhit | Fetching link previews when content is shared on Meta’s apps |
What helps: strong visibility in Google and Bing, accurate Open Graph titles, descriptions and images for link previews, and a Facebook page and Instagram profile whose details match your website.
Apple: Siri, Spotlight and Apple Intelligence
- Applebot crawls the web for Apple’s search features in Siri and Spotlight. Apple documents Applebot-Extended as a separate robots.txt token that lets sites opt out of their content being used to train Apple’s foundation models, without affecting search.
- Since late 2024, Siri with Apple Intelligence can pass some questions to ChatGPT when the user allows it, so ChatGPT search visibility matters for iPhone users too. See getting cited in ChatGPT search.
- For local questions, Siri and Apple Maps use Apple’s business data; claim and complete your listing in Apple Business Connect.
A combined checklist
| Action | Helps with |
|---|---|
| Allow Applebot and the search crawlers of other assistants in robots.txt and your CDN | Siri, Spotlight and AI search features |
| Strong indexing in Google and Bing | Meta AI’s real-time answers and many other assistants |
| Apple Business Connect listing | Siri and Apple Maps local answers |
| Accurate Open Graph tags | Link previews in WhatsApp, Instagram and Facebook |
| Consistent Facebook and Instagram business details | How Meta’s apps describe your business |
| Clear, answer-first pages | Every assistant |
Check access with our AI crawler access checker, and see the glossary for crawler names.
Other assistants
New assistants appear regularly, and each has its own sources. Rather than optimising for each one, keep the foundations strong and test your buyer questions in the assistants your customers actually use. Your analytics’ referral sources show which ones send visitors.
Frequently asked questions
Should we block Meta-ExternalAgent?
That is a decision about training use, like blocking GPTBot. It is separate from link previews and user fetches. See the AI crawler decision guide.
Can Meta AI recommend our business on WhatsApp?
It can mention businesses in answers, drawing on web sources. Accurate listings and strong search visibility make correct mentions more likely.
Does blocking Applebot-Extended affect Siri?
Apple says Applebot-Extended controls training use only; Applebot continues to crawl for search features.
Sources
- Meta, announcement of Meta AI with real-time search results, April 2024, and Meta AI launch in India, 2024
- Meta for Developers, web crawler documentation
- Apple, “About Applebot” (including Applebot-Extended)
- Apple, ChatGPT integration with Siri, iOS 18.2