DuckDuckGo introduces new tool for anonymizing the use of generative AI chatbots

DuckDuckGo has introduced a new free tool called AI Chat that provides anonymous access to popular generative artificial intelligence (AI) chatbots. This tool aims to address privacy concerns by preventing user interactions from being used for training purposes. DuckDuckGo AI Chat ensures that conversations cannot be traced back to individual users by removing their IP address and using DuckDuckGo’s IP instead. This way, it appears that requests are coming from DuckDuckGo and not from the user.

The AI Chat tool is optional and has its own website where users can select the chatbot or large language model (LLM) they want to interact with. Currently available options include GPT 3.5 Turbo from OpenAI, Claude 3 Haiku from Anthropic, and open-source options like Mixtral 8x7B and Meta Llama 3. DuckDuckGo emphasizes that they do not save or store any chats, although model providers may temporarily store them. Personal information and metadata are deleted to safeguard user privacy.

DuckDuckGo has agreements in place with model providers to ensure that saved chats are completely removed within 30 days and that chats cannot be used to train or improve the models. The company plans to expand AI Chat options by incorporating more chat models, potentially including self-hosted or user-hosted options. Overall, DuckDuckGo’s AI Chat tool prioritizes user privacy and anonymity while interacting with AI chatbots.