DuckDuckGo launches DuckAssist: an AI assistant that crawls the internet for you and collects the most important information for your search.
Generative AI is the trend of the times. After Microsoft’s Bing, DuckDuckGo is the next internet service to experiment with AI-generated search results. In a blog post, DuckDuckGo announces DuckAssist and is now making the search function available in all versions of the browser.
DuckAssist works completely differently than Bing Chat, for example. Rather, the tool is an aggregator that searches for the best sources of information based on what you’re looking for and summarizes them for you. So there are no chat functions, and besides, you can’t have a pleasant (or very strange) chat with the AI assistant in DuckDuckGo.
Wikipedia summary
The tool is now open as a beta for all DuckDuckGo users. No waiting list, no obligation to make DuckDuckGo your default browser, just open the browser and type in a search query. The word “beta” implies that there are still limitations.
For example, DuckAssist doesn’t show up for all searches. This only happens with searches looking for factual information. The information now comes ‘more than 99 percent’ from Wikipedia, which means DuckAssist basically just summarizes relevant Wikipedia pages for you.
Gabriel Weinberg tells TechCrunch that DuckAssist now relies almost exclusively on what can be found on Wikipedia to make the information as reliable as possible. A 100% guarantee cannot yet be given, he says. In the future, DuckDuckGo would like to link other sources with DuckAssist. Weinberg also says DuckAssist will be the first of many AI features in the browser.
Quo vadis Google?
Now that DuckDuckGO is also experimenting with AI-generated search results, the pressure on Google will only increase. Google is seeing more and more competitors adding AI capabilities, the tech giant is lagging behind a bit at the moment. With Bard, Google has the answer, but an unfortunate launch has taken the momentum. Google will most likely announce big news about artificial intelligence during I/O 2023 in May.
Source: IT Daily
As an experienced journalist and author, Mary has been reporting on the latest news and trends for over 5 years. With a passion for uncovering the stories behind the headlines, Mary has earned a reputation as a trusted voice in the world of journalism. Her writing style is insightful, engaging and thought-provoking, as she takes a deep dive into the most pressing issues of our time.