Privacy-focused search engine DuckDuckGo is trying to win over schools unhappy with Google's approach to artificial intelligence, TechCrunch reports. On Tuesday Google told schools they could switch off Gemini, but said that turning off its other AI features would also mean losing Google Search.
DuckDuckGo's chief executive, Gabriel Weinberg, posted on X directing schools to instructions for making DuckDuckGo their default search engine, and another executive accused Google of behaving like a monopolist. The company told TechCrunch that Google could easily disable AI in Search for schools if it chose to. Google has said it was responding to feedback and that Gemini, Notebook and Search would be off by default for schools to enable individually. DuckDuckGo offers its own AI tools but lets users turn them off. Google has tens of millions of Chromebooks in schools.
Source: TechCrunch