DuckDuckGo is experiencing a significant surge in user adoption as consumers push back against Google’s recent overhaul of its search engine. Following Google’s announcement to replace traditional search results with AI-driven agents that execute tasks and monitor queries, DuckDuckGo has seen a dramatic increase in app installs. In the United States, weekly installs grew by an average of over 18%, with some days seeing peaks of over 30%. On iOS devices, the growth was even more pronounced, with some spikes reaching nearly 70%.

The shift appears to be driven by a growing desire for user autonomy and concerns regarding the accuracy of AI-generated search overviews. Many users have expressed frustration with being ‘force-fed’ AI content without an easy way to opt out, a sentiment echoed by DuckDuckGo CEO Gabriel Weinberg. Weinberg noted that the integration of AI into Google’s core search experience has led to a perceived decline in result quality, prompting users to seek platforms that prioritize choice and privacy.

To cater to this demand, DuckDuckGo has seen increased traffic to its dedicated ‘no-AI’ search page, which allows users to bypass AI-assisted answers and generated images entirely. While the company does offer its own AI tools through Duck.ai—providing access to models from Anthropic, Meta, Mistral, and OpenAI—it maintains a strict privacy policy. The service strips IP addresses and prevents user data from being used to train AI models, offering a middle ground for those who want advanced technology without sacrificing their digital footprint.