DuckDuckGo's app is growing in popularity after Google turned search into AI

[Alfonso Maruccia]

AI Off: Google recently announced a significant overhaul of its web search experience, and a reckoning may be coming. One of the most popular alternative search engines is reporting a significant influx of new users, as many netizens dislike being forced to use AI when they are simply searching for something online.

Google has decided to turn web search into a more chatbot-like experience, and not everyone is thrilled with the change. Critics of AI-driven search are now expecting a significant backlash, with many users looking for alternative search services to avoid reinforcing Mountain View's LLM-centric approach. According to data provided by DuckDuckGo, that backlash may already be underway.

Founded by Gabriel Weinberg in 2008, DuckDuckGo is one of the most popular alternatives to Google Search. Over the years, the Pennsylvania-based company has experienced significant growth and now offers dedicated web browsers, mobile apps, and other services. More importantly, DuckDuckGo has taken a markedly different approach to AI and chatbot integration than most Big Tech companies.

After Google announced its new search experience, DuckDuckGo app downloads began to rise. New app installs increased by 18.1% compared to the previous week, followed by six consecutive days of sustained growth that peaked at 30% on May 25. Downloads on iOS devices climbed even higher, with an average week-over-week increase of 33% and a peak of 69.9%.

Furthermore, traffic to the recently unveiled noai.duckduckgo.com domain grew by 22.7% over the course of a week. The service strips web search of additional AI features, including chatbot-style answers and AI-generated images. At the same time, DuckDuckGo still provides its own AI-powered tools, including the Duck.ai service, which offers anonymous access to popular LLMs and other AI models.

Duck.ai is my preferred option when I am forced to use AI, as DuckDuckGo removes IP addresses and other identifying metadata. Weinberg said the company is focused on giving users a choice while protecting their privacy through a strict no-data-collection policy.

"Everything you do in DuckDuckGo is private; we don't collect search histories or chats and nothing is used for AI training," Weinberg said.

Earlier this year, DuckDuckGo asked users whether they wanted AI integrated into online search. Most respondents preferred not to use it, prompting the company to more clearly separate its AI-focused services from a more traditional "no AI" web experience.

Generative AI services are having a significant impact on the traditional web, with many companies and publishers struggling to adapt to an increasingly bot-driven internet. The latest DuckDuckGo figures suggest that a significant number of people still prefer to browse the web using conventional search tools rather than AI-generated results.

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DuckDuckGo's app is growing in popularity after Google turned search into AI

 

[Tech420]

If google was smart, they would create a sub company under a different name and buy duck duck go. They could keep duck non-AI, but still get to keep the data about what people are searching and combine it with their main database. That way users are happy and don't even know their data is still being collected by the same company

 

[pietklerckx]

Shortcut: duck.com

 

[p51d007]

I've used the brave browser for years, and DDG is my default search engine. (DDG uses Bing).
99% of the time I find what I need on DDG. Maybe one or two times I'll use google but not much.
Plus, heck, doesn't really matter per say which engine you use. Google, Bing are the majors and
pretty much the others scrape off them.

Search Engine Map

 

[daffy duck]

DuckDuckGo uses Bing as the basis for their search, they don't have their own search engine. Sure they can customise it but it's not like Brave search which is not based on Google or Bing. It's like StartPage which is a privacy focused version of Google search.

Having said that I mostly use DDG for search, but I'm not always happy and often have to try other engines to get the results I'm looking for. But it will be a cold day in hell before I ever support Google again.

 

[zavrix]

Been using DDG for years as well now and have found it's much improved from what it once was. Only been really having to use Google or something else a couple of times a year when searching.

 

[jeffbert]

I also use DDG, but miss the images option. Used Vivaldi, which uses STARTPAGE search engine that does offer the images option.

 

[Northy]

DDG asks people what they want, then gives them what they asked for, and profits.

It's a radical approach that somehow works, haha.

 

[daffy duck]

I wish Firefox had the money and manpower to develop their own search engine. I'm amazed Apple has never bothered and would rather license Google's search crap and pay them billions each year rather than develop their own engine.

 

[JaredTheDragon]

I wish Firefox had the money and manpower to develop their own search engine. I'm amazed Apple has never bothered and would rather license Google's search crap and pay them billions each year rather than develop their own engine.

They are both owned by the same two investment firms. Every tech agency is, including this website.

 

[Gravitytr1]

They are both owned by the same two investment firms. Every tech agency is, including this website.

This is the way.

In our human minds, it's hard to realize that everyone around us isn't owned by one person or entire, like the government. We are naturally predisposed to that. But in our artificial world, everything is owned by a conglomerate. And all conglomerates are owned by a handful of shareholders.

We live in a simulacrum of those stereotypical communist grocery stores, where you only have the option to buy one type of milk, one type of cereal, one brand for everything. The difference is just marketing, as we think these"different brands" are different companies with different ethos and morality and owners. But in reality, it's all one or two.

You could open up a new company if you're wealthy enough, but you'd be priced out by monopolistic practices and collusion. And if you weren't, no one would buy your product because all the grocery stores are also owned by that same shareholder. And even if you did get past ask those obstacles, they'd just buy you up, spin negative pr, write false publications, or otherwise cripple you and make you want to sell.

 

[Godel]

I also use DDG, but miss the images option. Used Vivaldi, which uses STARTPAGE search engine that does offer the images option.

DDG obviously has an image search. Did you mean a reverse image search?

 

[jeffbert]

DDG obviously has an image search. Did you mean a reverse image search?

No, just that [images] is one of the results selections.

 

[zavrix]

No, just that [images] is one of the results selections.

But you said you miss the images option? Very confused I am lol