New AI Chatbot DuckAssist Aims to Make Your Answers More Reliable

Privacy-focused search engine DuckDuckGo just added an AI-powered assistant to its product line. 

The appropriately-named DuckAssist grabs relevant information from Wikipedia to deliver brief and accurately-sourced answers to user queries. The information is displayed directly above actual search results, so you can continue researching for more context and nuance. 

This technology is strictly for answering simple questions, so it lacks some of that chatbot je ne sais quoi found with competitors. In other words, DuckAssist will not proclaim its love for you anytime soon, but it will let you know various details about Antarctica (or anything else you ask it about.) 

Due to the nature of DuckAssist’s sources (Wikipedia and Brittanica), the service excels with simple questions that have definitive answers. The dataset is refreshed every couple of weeks via a Wikipedia download, however, so it might struggle with up-to-the-minute queries. 

DuckDuckGo is a search company that prioritizes privacy, and DuckAssist takes advantage of this philosophy. There is no sign-up required, and queries are not saved to ensure anonymity. 

A beta of DuckAssist is available right now via the actual DuckDuckGo search engine or one of its plugins. It is free to use, so have at it. 

As for the future, DuckDuckGo is just getting started. The company says they are working on a "series of generative AI-assisted features" that are rolling out in the coming months, though they remain mum as to what each feature will entail.