Google competitor DuckDuckGo reported a significant rise in U.S. app installations. This growth follows criticism of Google's recent AI-driven search overhaul.
DuckDuckGo's U.S. installations peaked 30.5% higher week-over-week on May 25. Its iOS installations showed even stronger growth.
The surge coincides with public backlash against Google's mandatory "AI Overviews." Critics cite the feature for delivering inaccurate or bizarre results, which users cannot opt out of.
DuckDuckGo CEO Gabriel Weinberg claimed Google is "force-feeding AI" as users seek more control. Weinberg pointed to increased traffic to DuckDuckGo's AI-free search option.