What is Applebot-Extended? Apple Intelligence Crawler Explained (2026)

Apple entered the AI race in a big way with Apple Intelligence, and with it came a new web crawler: Applebot-Extended. This crawler is separate from the original Applebot that has been powering Siri and Spotlight search for years. Applebot-Extended is specifically designed to collect web data for training Apple's AI models. For website owners, this means you now have a new AI crawler to manage, and the decisions you make about it can affect whether your content becomes part of Apple's AI training data.

In this guide, we will cover everything about Applebot-Extended: what it is, how it differs from the original Applebot, what data it collects, and how to control access. We will also explain how Applebot-Extended fits into the broader Apple Intelligence ecosystem and why the distinction between these two crawlers matters for your AI strategy.

Start by checking your current status. Use the AI bot access checker to see whether Applebot-Extended can currently access your website content.

What is Apple Intelligence?

Apple Intelligence is Apple's on-device and cloud AI system, first announced in June 2024 and expanded throughout 2025 and 2026. Unlike competitors that rely heavily on cloud processing, Apple Intelligence runs many AI features directly on iPhone, iPad, and Mac devices. However, it also connects to cloud-based AI models for more complex tasks.

Apple Intelligence powers a wide range of features across Apple devices:

All of these features require vast amounts of training data. While Apple emphasizes on-device processing and privacy, the AI models themselves need to be trained on web content. That is where Applebot-Extended comes in.

Applebot vs. Applebot-Extended: The Key Difference

The most important thing to understand is that Apple uses two separate crawlers with different purposes. This is a pattern we have seen from other companies too. Google did the same thing by splitting Googlebot (search) from Google-Extended (AI training).

The key takeaway is that you can block Applebot-Extended (AI training) while keeping Applebot (search) allowed. This means you can prevent Apple from using your content to train AI models while still appearing in Siri suggestions and Spotlight search results on Apple devices.

This mirrors what OpenAI did with GPTBot versus ChatGPT-User. The industry is moving toward splitting training crawlers from search crawlers, giving website owners more control.

How Applebot-Extended Works

Applebot-Extended operates similarly to other major AI crawlers. Here is the step-by-step process:

Apple has stated that Applebot-Extended is designed to be respectful of server resources. It honors crawl-delay directives in robots.txt and adjusts its crawling speed based on server response times. In practice, most website owners report that Applebot-Extended puts very little load on their servers compared to more aggressive crawlers like ByteSpider.

Identifying Applebot-Extended in server logs

You can spot Applebot-Extended in your server access logs by looking for its user agent string:

The key identifier is Applebot-Extended in the user agent string. The regular Applebot uses just Applebot without the "-Extended" suffix.

You can verify that Applebot-Extended requests are legitimate by performing a reverse DNS lookup. Apple's crawlers come from IP ranges that resolve to Apple-owned domains. If the reverse DNS does not match Apple's domain, the request may be from an impersonator.

Apple's Privacy Approach to AI Crawling

Apple has built its brand around privacy, and this extends to how they handle data collected by Applebot-Extended. Here is what Apple has communicated about their data practices:

While Apple's privacy reputation is strong, the fundamental issue remains the same as with other AI companies. If you allow Applebot-Extended to crawl your site, your content will be used to train AI models. The difference is in how Apple handles that data after collection. Whether you consider Apple's privacy assurances sufficient depends on your own standards and business needs.

How to Control Applebot-Extended Access

You have several options for managing Applebot-Extended access to your website:

Option 1: Block Applebot-Extended only (recommended)

This blocks AI training while keeping Siri and Spotlight functionality:

Option 2: Block both Applebot crawlers

This completely prevents Apple from crawling your site for any purpose:

Note: Blocking both means your site will not appear in Siri suggestions or Spotlight search on Apple devices. Only choose this option if you have no interest in Apple's search ecosystem.

Option 3: Allow both (maximum Apple AI visibility)

If you want your content to appear in Apple Intelligence features and are comfortable with AI training, allow both crawlers full access. You do not need to add any rules since the default behavior is to allow access. Just make sure your robots.txt does not have any Disallow rules that would catch Apple's crawlers.

How Apple Compares to Other AI Crawlers

Apple's approach to AI crawling is relatively respectful compared to some competitors. Here is how Applebot-Extended compares to other major AI crawlers:

Apple's decision to create a completely separate user agent for AI training is considered best practice in the industry. It gives website owners the clearest possible control. Compare this to ClaudeBot, which uses a single crawler for both search and training purposes, making it harder to control access granularly.

Impact on Website Owners

Apple Intelligence is installed on over 2 billion Apple devices worldwide. This makes Applebot-Extended one of the most consequential AI crawlers to manage. Here is how it can affect your website:

The scale of Apple's user base makes this decision particularly significant. If Siri becomes a major source of web referral traffic (as it is trending to become), websites that blocked Applebot-Extended early may find themselves at a disadvantage. On the other hand, waiting gives Apple more of your content for training before you decide.

Use the scan your site for AI crawlers tool to check whether both Applebot and Applebot-Extended are currently allowed or blocked on your site. This helps you understand your current exposure and make informed decisions.

Optimizing for Apple Intelligence

If you decide to allow Applebot-Extended, there are steps you can take to improve your chances of being cited in Apple Intelligence responses:

Understanding Applebot-Extended Fallback Behavior

One important technical detail about Applebot-Extended is its fallback behavior when reading robots.txt rules. When Applebot-Extended visits your site, it checks your robots.txt file in a specific order:

This fallback behavior means you need to be careful about the order and specificity of your rules. Here is the safest configuration to block AI training while allowing Siri search:

If you only add the Applebot-Extended Disallow without an explicit Applebot Allow, and your wildcard rule blocks all bots, you might accidentally block the regular Applebot too. Always be explicit with both crawler rules.

Measuring Siri and Apple Intelligence Traffic

Tracking traffic from Apple's AI ecosystem is important but more difficult than tracking traffic from web-based AI search. Here is how to measure your Apple AI exposure:

Use these log analysis commands to track Applebot activity:

Apple's AI ecosystem is growing rapidly, and Applebot-Extended will become more important as Apple Intelligence expands to more devices and features. Making a thoughtful decision now about how to handle these crawlers will serve your website well in the coming years.

Key Takeaways