A web search without AI-supported answers, chat prompts and (if possible) without AI images – that’s what DuckDuckGo and other alternative search engines like Kagi have been offering for a while. Apparently with success: Last week, web visits to its AI-free search site increased by almost 30 percent compared to the previous week, the company said. App installations in the USA also increased by 18.1 percent week-on-week, and iOS app installations in the USA even reached a peak of 69.9 percent, according to DuckDuckGo.
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Especially since Google is using more and more AI in its results instead of simply presenting a link list of websites as it used to, traffic on DuckDuckGo is likely to be increasing. A comment on Telepolis also analyzes how Google degrades the open web into a raw material for its AI search – and drives users to alternatives.
No-AI search is now also possible as a standard search engine
However, until recently, you had to manually navigate to the address of the AI-free search site noai.duckduckgo.com. Now there is a No-AI Search extension for Chrome and Firefox browsers, making this search engine the default. Once activated, users will be redirected to DuckDuckGo’s AI-free search page. Users who have already switched to the DuckDuckGo web browser will retain their AI settings even if they clear their browsing history.
In addition to the new extensions, DuckDuckGo says it will soon update its DuckDuckGo Privacy Essentials extensions for Chrome, Firefox, Edge, and Opera, which have been blocking trackers and the like for a while. Here too, there will soon be a control option for AI search settings.
(rie)
