IndexedEntity vs CoreSpotlight

Question

Created 9h

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This post is from the WWDC26 App Intents & Siri Q&A.

In my app, I use CoreSpotlight to create CSSearchableItems (for Spotlight integration), and I also have a list of AppEntities for Shortcuts support. Are there any big benefits in migrating this setup to using IndexedEntity, with regards to Siri and Apple Intelligence? I also would need to support iOS17 for now. Note that the AppEntities don't map onto any existing AppSchema domains.

Answered by Frameworks Engineer in 891848022

IndexedEntity is available starting iOS 18. Siri interacting with your entities requires that they be schematized and fit into one of the existing domains. In your case, you won't see behavior changes by switching from using CSSearchableItem directly to adopting IndexedEntity since your entities are not schematized and are accessible in the Spotlight UI but not via Siri.

Answer 1

divyaravi11992 OP

9h

Accepted Answer

Worth migrating — the difference is searchability vs. semantic reasoning.

CSSearchableItem makes content findable by keyword. IndexedEntity contributes your entities to the semantic index that Siri AI actually reasons over — so Siri can understand and act on them conversationally, with attribution back to your app.

Since you already maintain both CoreSpotlight items and App Entities, consolidating onto IndexedEntity removes the duplicate indexing path.

For iOS 17 support: you'll need availability-gating — IndexedEntity for iOS 27+, your existing CoreSpotlight path as fallback. Not mapping to a schema domain doesn't block IndexedEntity — indexing works independently.

— Divya Ravi, Senior iOS Engineer

Answer 2

Frameworks Engineer OP

Apple

8h

Recommended

IndexedEntity is available starting iOS 18. Siri interacting with your entities requires that they be schematized and fit into one of the existing domains. In your case, you won't see behavior changes by switching from using CSSearchableItem directly to adopting IndexedEntity since your entities are not schematized and are accessible in the Spotlight UI but not via Siri.