# Some users may be giving Google's AI search the bird, and DuckDuckGo is benefiting > Source: > Published: 2026-05-27 19:56:30+00:00 [DuckDuckGo](https://www.businessinsider.com/reference/what-is-duckduckgo) has seen usage surge after [Google](https://www.businessinsider.com/why-google-delayed-gemini-3-5-pro-ai-model-2026-5) unveiled its biggest Search overhaul in decades, suggesting some users may be looking for alternatives as the internet giant pushes deeper into AI. DuckDuckGo, a privacy-focused search engine, said US installs rose an average of 20.8% week over week in the seven days after Google's May 19 announcements at its I/O conference. Growth peaked at 37.6% on May 26, according to DuckDuckGo. On iOS in the US, installs climbed an average of 33% during the same period, reaching nearly 70% growth on May 25. DuckDuckGo also said visits to its noai.duckduckgo.com page, where AI features are disabled by default, rose 22.7% on average week-over-week. The timing is notable, though it's unclear whether Google's changes directly caused the increase. At I/O, Google announced a [sweeping redesign of Search](https://www.businessinsider.com/google-intelligent-search-box-ai-mode-features-information-agents-io-2026-5) that brings more AI features into the core search experience. The company is integrating capabilities from [AI Mode](https://www.businessinsider.com/google-io-2026-5-biggest-takeaways-ai-advances-2026-5) directly into the main search box, allowing users to ask longer, conversational questions and upload images, videos, files, and browser tabs. Google is also adding AI-generated suggestions and follow-up conversations directly within Search. DuckDuckGo executives argued that some users are pushing back against that approach. "Google is force-feeding AI with no way to opt out," DuckDuckGo CEO Gabriel Weinberg said in a statement. "We want to be the place that puts users in charge and allows them to decide how much or how little AI they want." A usage spike this steep is pretty unprecedented in recent memory, according to DuckDuckGo spokesperson Kamyl Bazbaz. "There hasn't been a news event that created this kind of jump in a long time," Bazbaz told Business Insider. "I would have remembered one." Still, the data is limited to DuckDuckGo's internal figures, and broader shifts in search behavior remain difficult to measure. *Sign up for BI's Tech Memo newsletter *[here](https://www.businessinsider.com/subscription/newsletter/tech-memo)*. Reach out to me via email at *[abarr@businessinsider.com](mailto:abarr@businessinsider.com)*.*