Many have tried to fight Google based on the (incorrect) idea that having "a better search engine" will win. I guess this is why people still keep building these things.
You can't win Google by "building a better search engine". Many smart people before you have tried and didn't succeed, and it wasn't because they were not smart enough, or because the product was inferior. It's because search engine has become a stable category, just like you eat the same cereal every morning.
People won't suddenly ditch all cereals from general meals just because some newcomer cereal company makes a "better cereal". You have to build something completely different, or at least position it that way so people perceive it as a different category.
While all these people were "trying to beat google", it was actually Facebook that came close to "beating" google at its own game. Don't just build a better something. Build something different.