DuckDuckGo introduces an AI-driven summary feature

DuckDuckGo, the privacy-focused search engine, has announced the beta launch of DuckAssist, a new AI-driven summary feature.

DuckAssist aims to help users find factual information faster and directly respond to simple search queries. The feature uses natural language technology from OpenAI and Anthropic combined with active indexing of Wikipedia and other reference sites to source answers.

Founder Gabe Weinberg notes that DuckAssist currently uses “99%+ Wikipedia” but is experimenting with other sources to adapt to the context of the query. DuckAssist is currently only available in English and will be available to all search users in the coming weeks.

While DDG’s search engine already has Instant Answers, the addition of generative AI summarization has allowed the search engine to expand the number of queries it can answer directly. DuckAssist can respond directly to a query, quickly unearth information buried in articles, and synthesize information from multiple Wikipedia excerpts.

The feature works by using artificial intelligence to generate new natural language answers “based on specific/relevant parts of Wikipedia articles”. According to Weinberg, DuckAssist is designed to increase the likelihood of a correct answer, while also giving users information that the answer is automatic, pointing them to reference sources where they can do their own fact-checking.

DuckAssist is a free-to-use beta feature that does not require the user to log in.

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