Other search engines can't compete mostly because they don't have enough click data to build good ranking models.
If Google shut down for just a few days, competing engines would quickly gather click data, and would rapidly be able to close the gap.
Add that to the fact users will change their default search engines away during any Google shutdown, and very negative Google press, and you have a recipe for Google losing the entire market.
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I think they know the risk; they are confident competing search engines can’t, well, compete.
Other search engines can't compete mostly because they don't have enough click data to build good ranking models.
If Google shut down for just a few days, competing engines would quickly gather click data, and would rapidly be able to close the gap.
Add that to the fact users will change their default search engines away during any Google shutdown, and very negative Google press, and you have a recipe for Google losing the entire market.