DuckDuckGo, the privacy-focused search engine, has announced the release of its new AI feature, DuckAssist. The feature will be available to users of DuckDuckGo's browser apps or extensions for free.
DuckAssist is an optional addition to the search engine's existing Instant Answers feature, which provides quick answers to user queries without clicking on the search results links. Unlike ChatGPT or Microsoft's Bing AI, DuckAssist is not a chatbot. Instead, it scans sources like Wikipedia and occasionally Britannica to generate a response. The answer is then summarized using technology from ChatGPT creator OpenAI and Anthropic to make it more conversational.
According to Gabriel Weinberg, the founder and CEO of DuckDuckGo, DuckAssist works best for straightforward questions. For instance, it can answer "What is the capital of Nigeria?" better than questions with qualitative elements like "What is the best Legend of Zelda game?" DuckAssist's relevancy function may also generate inaccuracies or miss key sentences, resulting in errors in the response.
To use DuckAssist, users should phrase their queries in the form of a question. Adding "wiki" to the query also increases the likelihood of DuckAssist generating a response. DuckDuckGo has assured users that DuckAssist is anonymous and doesn't share personally identifiable information with third parties.
Starting today, you can try DuckAssist in our browsers and extensions!
— DuckDuckGo (@DuckDuckGo) March 8, 2023
If you ask a question in our search box that can be answered by Wikipedia, DuckAssist may appear and use AI natural language technology to anonymously generate a brief, sourced summary of what it finds there. pic.twitter.com/MQhB4re0pL
The beta version of DuckAssist is available for use now. However, DuckDuckGo has cautioned that the tool may not always generate the correct answer, and it may struggle to answer complex questions. The search engine has also confirmed plans to release other AI-enhanced search and browsing features in the near future.
DuckDuckGo joins other tech companies, such as Microsoft and Google, that have recently introduced their AI tools to the public. While these tools are chatbots based on OpenAI's ChatGPT, DuckAssist is an addition to the Instant Answers feature. DuckAssist is being released in beta, and if the beta goes well, DuckDuckGo plans to release it to all search users in the coming weeks.
Users can disable DuckAssist in search settings if they don't want to use the tool. Disabling DuckAssist will also disable all Instant Answers outside of DuckAssist.