The launch and media exposure of ChatGPT represent a "hinge moment" for the development of artificial intelligence. Microsoft didn't hesitate to integrate similar technology into its Bing search engine, Google embarrassed itself with the presentation of Bard, and now DuckDuckGo joins the fray with its just-announced DuckAssist. The big difference is that DuckAssist bets on immediate answers backed by information available on Wikipedia.
Nobody wants to miss the AI train. In one way or another, the major players are developing methods to absorb the new algorithmic magic and ensure their relevance in the short and medium term. In some cases (like OpenAI with ChatGPT) we find that the best seats are already taken, while in others (say, Google Bard) they are still running along the platform.
Amid all this chaos, the DuckDuckGo folks have just announced a new feature for their search engine called DuckAssist. As its name suggests, it's an assistant designed to deliver short generative answers to users, but instead of betting on a gigantic model, DuckAssist has an ace up its sleeve: Wikipedia.
DuckAssist: DuckDuckGo + AI + Wikipedia
Why Wikipedia? Simple: by looking for answers in the largest encyclopedia on the internet, DuckAssist minimizes the risk of "rambling" or "hallucinating" with each exchange. This is better appreciated in ChatGPT sessions, when the chatbot essentially ends up inventing things to satisfy the user's request.
Although Wikipedia is not DuckAssist's only source (the official presentation also mentions sites like Britannica), the main answers will come through that path, as DuckDuckGo uses one of the latest available copies of the encyclopedia (the "cut-off" is a couple of weeks). At the same time, those responsible acknowledge that the assistant will make several mistakes and won't respond immediately to all requests, a detail we already verified during our testing.
Now, the official announcement of DuckAssist doesn't 100% confirm the use of ChatGPT, but rather mentions a combination of OpenAI and Anthropic, which has its own chatbot called Claude. Interested in trying DuckAssist? The key to accessing the assistant on PC is to install the official DuckDuckGo extension compatible with Chrome, Firefox, Safari, while on mobile devices, simply download the browsing app. For now, all interactions will be in English, and DuckDuckGo recommends prioritizing the question format or adding the expression "wiki" to our searches.
Official announcement: Click here
