As DuckDuckGo‘s traffic continues to increase day after day, the alternative search engine is leveraging anti-AI sentiment. The company has introduced new browser extensions that enable users to conveniently establish its no-AI search experience, available at noai.duckduckgo.com, as their default search engine.
According to the business, once activated, users will be taken to DuckDuckGo’s AI-free search page, where there are fewer AI pictures in the search results, no chat prompts, and no AI-assisted responses. Users of Firefox and Chrome can currently download the extensions. Even if they delete their browser history, users who have switched to the DuckDuckGo web browser already have their AI settings maintained.
The extensions, according to the business, are designed to give users a consistent AI-free search experience, which is more difficult to find these days, particularly since Google revealed its AI-first redesign of its search engine at its developer conference earlier in May.
Traffic to DuckDuckGo has grown dramatically ever since. The company reported last week that there was a roughly 30% weekly increase in web visits to its non-AI search page and an 18.1% weekly increase in U.S. app installs, with U.S. iOS app installs reaching a peak of 69.9% weekly growth.
These developments came after it was revealed that Google was making the most significant changes to its search engine in over 25 years by redesigning its search bar. Google will now prefer to direct consumers to AI-generated search overviews rather than links at the top of the page. These overviews are becoming more interactive and can create visualizations, charts, graphs, or even small apps as needed. Users will be pushed into an AI Mode chat experience by follow-up inquiries from AI Overviews. What was once Google’s defining feature, the “10 blue links,” has been relegated to an afterthought, appearing below an array of AI-powered productivity results.
However, some people are switching to other search engines like DuckDuckGo, Kagi, and others because they disagree with AI becoming the norm.
Late last month, DuckDuckGo saw traffic to its no-AI-free search page triple, reaching a new high since Google’s search announcement. The numbers are still climbing. The company emphasizes that the growth is not occurring in brief spurts. Instead, visits are averaging roughly 84% above the baseline, indicating a more enduring transformation.
DuckDuckGo will shortly update its original DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials extensions for Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Opera to provide controls for AI search settings in addition to the new “no AI” search Chrome and Firefox extensions.
It is important to note that DuckDuckGo does not oppose artificial intelligence. In addition to a subscription plan that gives access to the newest models and other tools like a VPN service, identity theft restoration, and personal information removal services, the company still offers its own AI chatbot with access to numerous well-known models.
So what exactly is the “No AI” experience? Once you turn it on, the specialized search layout gets rid of a few things. It removes AI-assisted direct summaries and overviews. It also eliminates conversational AI chat prompts and icons. In addition, it blocks synthetic, AI-generated images by relying on curated open-source blocklists.
This represents a logical choice, not an anti-AI position. According to DuckDuckGo CEO Gabriel Weinberg, Google is “force-feeding AI with no way for people to opt out.” Nevertheless, DuckDuckGo is not fully anti-AI. The company still provides an independent, maximalist AI experience through its separate platform, Duck AI. The strategy focuses strictly on giving users a choice. It restores the classic “10 blue links” for those who prefer that experience.