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(This message was added in version 6.7.0.) in /home4/scienrds/scienceandnerds/wp-includes/functions.php on line 6114Source:https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/2023\/03\/08\/duckassist\/<\/a><\/br> Privacy-focused search engine DuckDuckGo<\/a> has followed Microsoft<\/a> and Google<\/a> to become the latest veteran search player to dip its beak in the generative AI trend \u2014 announcing the launch today in beta of an AI-powered summarization feature, called DuckAssist, which can directly answer straightforward search queries for users.<\/p>\n DDG says it\u2019s drawing on natural language technology from ChatGPT-maker OpenAI and Anthropic, an AI startup founded by ex-OpenAI employees, to power the natural language summarization capability, combined with its own active indexing of Wikipedia and other reference sites it\u2019s using to source answers (the encyclopedia Britannia is another source it mentions).<\/p>\n Founder Gabe Weinberg tells TechCrunch the sources it\u2019s using for DuckAssist are \u2014 currently \u2014 \u201c99%+ Wikipedia\u201d. But he notes the company is \u201cexperimenting with how incorporating other sources could work, and when to use them\u201d \u2014 which suggests it may seek to adapt sourcing to the context of the query (so, for example, a topical news-related search query might be better responded to by DuckAssist sourcing information from trusted news media). So it remains to be seen how DDG will evolve the feature \u2014 and whether it might, for example, seek to ink partnerships with reference sites.<\/p>\n At launch, DuckAssist is only available via DDG\u2019s apps and browser extensions \u2014 but the company says it plans to roll it out to all search users in the coming weeks. The beta feature is free to use and does not require the user to be logged in to access it. It\u2019s only available in English for now.<\/p>\n Per Weinberg, the AI models DDG is (\u201ccurrently\u201d) using to power the natural language summarization are: The Davinci model from OpenAI and the Claude model from Anthropic. He also notes DDG is \u201cexperimenting\u201d with the new Turbo model OpenAI recently announced.<\/p>\n It\u2019s worth noting that DDG\u2019s search engine does already have an Instant Answers feature which gets triggered for certain types of queries and also serves answers directly above the usual list of links. (Example scenarios include if you\u2019re asking the search engine to sum basic calculations, display a calendar for the current month or asking for factual snippets of info.)<\/p>\n However DDG says that adding in generative AI summarization has enabled it to expand how many queries can be directly answered in this way \u2014 dubbing the addition of generative AI into the mix here a \u201cfully integrated Instant Answer\u201d.<\/p>\n \u201cThe two main benefits compared to other instant answers are that DuckAssist answers will be more directly responsive to user questions, and that DuckAssist can answer significantly more questions,\u201d Weinberg tells us. \u201cThe generative AI behind DuckAssist generates new text for a particular query, where standard instant answers are generally pulling out quotes. In this way, DuckAssist can be more directly responsive to the query, quickly surface information buried in articles, and synthesize information from multiple Wikipedia snippets. As a result, it can answer a wider breadth of questions.\u201d<\/p>\n DuckAssist is intended to help users of the search engine find factual information more quickly \u2014 hence it only appears as an option when the technology assesses it can help with a specific query.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you search for a question in any DuckDuckGo app or browser extension, and DuckAssist thinks it might be able to find an answer from Wikipedia, you may see a magic wand icon and \u2018Ask Me\u2019 button at the top of your search results,\u201d DDG explains.<\/p>\n If an answer has previously been solicited by another DDG user the company says it will be displayed automatically \u2014 but it also notes that users can opt to disable Instant Answers (which includes DuckAssist) in the settings if they prefer not to be exposed to AI-generated summaries.<\/p>\n Weinberg says the feature works by using AI to generate new natural language responses \u201cbased on specific\/relevant sections of Wikipedia articles\u201d that DDG provides via its own scanning of sources. (He specifies DDG is using its own indexing technology \u201cto identify the relevant chunks of text from Wikipedia, and then ask the models to format answers in a way that is directly responsive to the query\u201d.)<\/p>\n Accuracy is one key concern being attached to applications of generative AI \u2014 given the technology can be prone to make up information and yet automated output that\u2019s presented in a natural language wrapper can sound highly authoritative despite not being fact-checked.<\/p>\n On this, Weinberg says DuckAssist has been designed to boost the probability that it will give a correct answer while also providing users with information that the answer is automated \u2014 and pointing them to the reference sources where they can do their own fact-check (i.e. if it turns out DuckAssist is being more of an \u2018ass\u2019 than an assistant).<\/p>\n \u201cA search engine\u2019s job is to surface reliable information quickly. We designed DuckAssist in way that leverages what natural language technology does well while trying to increase the probability it will give a correct answer when it appears in search results. We did that by intentionally limiting the sources DuckAssist is summarizing from,\u201d he says. \u201cFor now, DuckAssist is only pulling answers from Wikipedia and a handful of related sources, like Britannica. This greatly limits the probability DuckAssist will generate incorrect information or \u2018hallucinate\u2019, where the AI tool makes up random information.<\/p>\n \u201cNevertheless, we know it won\u2019t be right 100% of the time \u2014 If we do not provide the most relevant text [to the AI] to summarize, for example, or if Wikipedia itself has errors. In any case, we label every answer as not independently checked for accuracy and provide a link to the most relevant Wikipedia article for more info.\u201d<\/p>\n On the privacy side, DDG promises this search with AI feature is anonymous \u2014 and, in line with its headline privacy pledge, further emphasizes that no data is shared with any of the third parties it\u2019s working with to integrate the generative AI capability into its search engine. (In the blog post Weinberg also specifies that users\u2019 anonymous searches are not being used to train its suppliers\u2019 AI models.)<\/p>\n It\u2019s asking users to give feedback on the quality of the DuckAssist summaries \u2014 via a feedback link that\u2019s displayed next to all DuckAssist answers, as part of its approach to tackling the generative AI accuracy issue \u2014 and says this feedback is anonymous too, with user reports also only sent to DDG itself, not to any third parties.<\/p>\n While the launch of DuckAssist means there will, inevitably, be more automated answers popping up in response to users\u2019 queries, DDG notes the feature will still only be available for a minority of searches \u2014 since it\u2019s only intended to help with relatively straightforward asks. Phrasing a search query as a question makes it more likely the feature will appear in search results, it adds.<\/p>\n \u201cGenerative artificial intelligence is hitting the world of search and browsing in a big way,\u201d Weinberg writes in a blog post announcing what he says is \u201cthe first in a series of generative AI-assisted features we hope to roll out in the coming months\u201d. \u201cAt DuckDuckGo, we\u2019ve been trying to understand the difference between what it could do well in the future<\/em> and what it can do well right now<\/em>. But no matter how we decide to use this new technology, we want it to add clear value to our private search and browsing experience.\u201d<\/p>\n More AI powered search and browser features are also in the works from DDG, with additional AI-related news slated for the coming months. (Although he won\u2019t be drawn on what else it has cooking \u2014 saying only \u201cstay tuned!\u201d.)<\/p>\n Here\u2019s a clip of the DuckAssist feature in action for a search query that asks \u201cis antarctica a country\u201d \u2014 which shows the user being promoted to activate DuckAssist (\u201cask\u201d) and, on doing that, they receive a summarized natural language answer, displayed above the source (Wikipedia) and a reference to the section of the article it was sourced from:<\/p>\n In its blog post, DDG explains it selected Wikipedia as the main source for DuckAssist since the crowdsourced encyclopedia is already the primary source for its existing Instant Answers feature and, while not foolproof, it assesses it as \u201crelatively reliable<\/a> across a wide variety of subjects\u201d.<\/p>\n It also points out Wikipedia has the added benefit of being a public resource \u201cwith a transparent editorial process that cites all the sources used in an article, you can easily trace exactly where its information is coming from\u201d.<\/p>\n Plus Wikipedia is of course constantly being updated \u2014 expanding the queries DuckAssist can meaningfully respond to. That said, there is still a lag in the knowledge graph \u2014 as DDG notes that \u201cright now\u201d the DuckAssist Wikipedia index can be up to \u201ca few weeks old\u201d. (But it says it has plans to \u201cmake it even more recent\u201d, in addition to adding more sources \u201csoon\u201d.)<\/p>\n It\u2019s worth noting that DDG\u2019s current gen Instant Answers aren\u2019t always right, either.<\/p>\n At the time of writing, a DDG search for \u201cpeople in space\u201d generated a neat stack of ten cards of astronauts it suggested are currently up in orbit \u2014 however it displayed a photo of US astronaut Kayla Barron twice; once on her own card and once (incorrectly) paired with Germany astronaut Matthias Maurer\u2019s card. So error-prone techie shortcuts are nothing new.<\/p>\n Still, the power of generative AI to automate far more interactions \u2014 and, in this case, respond to many more types of search queries \u2014 could cause a bigger skew in the information landscape by substantially expanding the ability of platforms to apply such shortcuts which boosts the probability of their users running into tech-generated errors.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n <\/br><\/br><\/br><\/p>\n
\nDuckDuckGo dabbles with AI search<\/br>
\n2023-03-08 22:15:01<\/br><\/p>\n