At Google I/O in May, Google made it apparent that it is going all-in on AI with the world’s most popular search engine. And ChatGPT-maker OpenAI is still pushing its own AI browser. And yet people seem to be turning more and more to DuckDuckGo’s strictly AI-free search engine, which the privacy-focused company says is now it’s easier to access.
DuckDuckGo’s new browser extensions for Chrome or Firefox allow you to make its anti-AI search experience, noai.duckduckgo.com, your default search engine. Here’s how.
How to set up the extension
Set up is easy, taking seconds and just a few clicks. You can open DuckDuckGo’s AI-free search page and click the “Add our No-AI Search Extension.”
From there, you will be taken to a separate page to add the extensions to Chrome and Firefox, which will allow you to search the internet without any AI-generated answers, no chatbots and fewer AI images. You can also open the duckduckgo.com home page and click “Set As Default Search.”
If you already have a DuckDuckGo web browser, your AI settings will be preserved, even if you clear your browser history.
If you already have a DuckDuckGo web browser, your AI settings will be preserved, even if you clear your browser history.
DuckDuckGo sees steady rise in popularity
As the AI industry continues to expand, it’s apparent not everyone wants AI baked into their search experience. A DuckDuckGo representative recently told CNET that the company’s browser saw 21% more installations between May 20 and May 26 in the US than the week prior, coinciding with Google’s big search announcements. Browser installs on iOS also rose 33%, including 69% on Memorial Day.
The major difference between DuckDuckGo’s web browser and its competitors’ seems to be the ability to opt in or out of AI. While many companies are making AI the default, DuckDuckGo instead gives you the option to choose when you interact with its AI. The company isn’t anti-AI as a whole — still operating a chatbot with increased privacy and access to many popular models — but it is giving users the final say over how much AI they want.
Google, meanwhile, is fundamentally changing its search engine to center its Gemini AI even more. At Google I/O, its annual developer conference last month, the company announced a slew of updates coming to Search: a reimagined search box, AI agents that can research on your behalf and Gemini 3.5 Flash becoming the new default model behind AI Mode. All of these updates combine to show that Google is making AI the core of its future strategy and is fully embracing the era of agentic AI.
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