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In one or two sentences, before anything else.
Duck.ai is DuckDuckGo's private AI chat, launched in June 2024 as DuckDuckGo AI Chat. It lets you use models from OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral and others without an account, and DuckDuckGo strips your IP address before each request. Six models are free; stronger ones come with DuckDuckGo's 9.99 or 19.99 USD monthly plans.
What it can do, one sentence each, and whether we actually tested it.
DuckDuckGo sends each prompt to the model provider itself, removing your IP address and other identifying metadata, so the request appears to come from DuckDuckGo.
DuckDuckGo's own description; we found no independent audit of the proxy.
Claude 4.5 Haiku, Mistral Small 4, GPT-6 Luna, GPT-5.4 mini, gpt-oss-120b and Gemma 4 31B; the last two are hosted by Tinfoil in a trusted execution environment.
Per DuckDuckGo's model list, checked October 17, 2026; DuckDuckGo updates the line-up from time to time.
Plus adds GPT-5.6 Terra and Claude Sonnet 4.6; Pro adds Claude Opus 4.8 and GPT-5.6 Sol, higher reasoning effort and twice the Plus usage limits.
The subscription bundles a VPN and identity services; there is no AI-only plan.
Recent chats are saved locally by default; optional Sync & Backup merges chat histories across devices in end-to-end encrypted form, and the Fire Button inside Duck.ai deletes them.
Per DuckDuckGo's help pages.
Talks to an OpenAI model through an encrypted relay; DuckDuckGo says neither it nor OpenAI keeps the audio after the chat ends.
TechRadar dates the launch to February 2026; Firefox support is listed as coming soon.
Creates images from a prompt and reads uploaded images and PDFs on some models; PDFs are capped at 15 pages on Free, 35 on Plus and 50 on Pro, and spreadsheets are not supported.
Image creation has its own daily limit; DuckDuckGo does not name the image model.
Shares one answer or a whole chat through an encrypted link that expires after 48 hours by default (or 1, 2, 7 or 30 days) and is blocked from search engines.
Added October 7, 2026, per DuckDuckGo; uploaded files are not included in shared chats.
Duck.ai buttons can be hidden in DuckDuckGo's search and browser settings, and noai.duckduckgo.com has every AI feature off by default.
Per DuckDuckGo and Engadget (May 27, 2026).
The people it helps and the problems it solves, and where it ranks.
Built for
Problems it solves
Graded in
Public tests other people ran: what they gave it and how it did.
Case 1
Input
Research questions, email drafts and one multi-step analytical prompt, run unchanged on the free models and on Claude Opus 4.7 in Pro.
What happened
The Opus 4.7 answer was more structured and better reasoned, while the free tier was enough for everyday writing and quick lookups. Free-tier replies were slightly slower than ChatGPT's and the reviewer never hit a Pro limit. The line-up has changed since: Pro now lists Claude Opus 4.8.
Case 2
Input
Ask Duck.ai how Gemini and ChatGPT compare with it on privacy, including sharing data with third parties.
What happened
Duck.ai returned a list of the key differences, and Hughes judged it more protective of data than any chatbot he had tried. He also found it far more limited than ChatGPT, Gemini or Claude, with no image or video generation and no deep research at the time; DuckDuckGo has added image creation since.
Case 3
Input
Share one answer or the whole chat as a link that expires in 7 days.
What happened
DuckDuckGo says the link is encrypted and carries its own key, the recipient can read or continue the chat privately, generated images are included but uploaded files are not, and share pages are blocked from search indexing. This is the vendor's description; we found no independent test of it.
What it does badly, with the evidence, and what we could not settle.
Weak
Usage limits are not published.
Evidence: DuckDuckGo says it cannot state a number of prompts a day because each model costs a different amount, and that outside a subscription there is no way to buy more. TechRadar listed the vague limits as a reason to avoid it (July 2026).
No AI-only plan.
Evidence: The stronger models come only with the DuckDuckGo subscription, which bundles a VPN, Personal Information Removal (US only) and Identity Theft Restoration at 9.99 or 19.99 USD a month, and is sold only to residents of the US, UK, EU and Canada.
The free models are the smaller ones.
Evidence: Claude Sonnet 4.6 and GPT-5.6 Terra need Plus, and Claude Opus 4.8 and GPT-5.6 Sol need Pro. TechRadar called the free models mid-tier.
File handling is narrow.
Evidence: Uploads work only for images and PDFs on some models, PDFs stop at 15 pages on the free plan, and spreadsheets are not supported, per DuckDuckGo's help pages.
Developers, and anyone whose prompts must never leave their own device, should not use it.
Evidence: Duck.ai has no public API (TechRadar). Every prompt still goes to an outside provider such as OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral, Microsoft Azure or Tinfoil, and DuckDuckGo says Anthropic may keep chats where the law requires or to fight misuse.
Uncertain
How long providers may keep chats.
Why unsure: DuckDuckGo's help page says every provider deletes prompts and replies right after answering, but the Duck.ai Privacy Terms, updated October 1, 2026, say providers delete them at most within 30 days, with Zero Data Retention only on some models and longer retention for safety and legal compliance.
Whether the anonymisation holds up.
Why unsure: The proxy and the provider agreements are described only by DuckDuckGo; we found no independent audit of Duck.ai, and the audits DuckDuckGo links from its help pages cover its VPN.
Which models accept uploads.
Why unsure: TechRadar wrote in July 2026 that file uploads were not supported, while Tom's Guide (October 2025) and DuckDuckGo's help pages describe image and PDF uploads on some models; DuckDuckGo does not say which ones.
The numbers, each with its source and the date we checked it.
| Spec | Value | Note and source |
|---|---|---|
| Maker and launch | DuckDuckGo; launched June 6, 2024 as DuckDuckGo AI Chat | Source: spreadprivacy.comchecked |
| Name | Duck.ai since March 6, 2025, at duck.ai | Source: spreadprivacy.comchecked |
| Free models | Claude 4.5 Haiku, Mistral Small 4, GPT-6 Luna, GPT-5.4 mini, gpt-oss-120b and Gemma 4 31B | Source: duckduckgo.comchecked |
| Subscriber models | Plus: GPT-5.6 Terra, Claude Sonnet 4.6. Pro adds Claude Opus 4.8, GPT-5.6 Sol, higher reasoning effort and 2x Plus limits | Source: duckduckgo.comchecked |
| Plans and prices | Plus 9.99 USD a month or 99.99 USD a year; Pro 19.99 USD a month or 199.99 USD a year; same figures in EUR and GBP; Canada 13.99 or 27.99 CAD a month | Source: duckduckgo.comchecked |
| Where the subscription is sold | Residents of the US, UK, EU and Canada; Duck.ai itself works in any browser | Source: duckduckgo.comchecked |
| Usage limits | Daily limit on every plan with no published number; subscribers also get a weekly allowance; daily limits reset at midnight UTC | Source: duckduckgo.comchecked |
| Uploads | Images and PDFs on some models; PDFs up to 15 pages (Free), 35 (Plus) or 50 (Pro); no spreadsheets | Source: duckduckgo.comchecked |
| Provider agreements (help page) | No training on chats; prompts and replies deleted right after the reply; Anthropic may retain where required by law or to combat misuse | Source: duckduckgo.comchecked |
| Privacy Terms | Updated October 1, 2026: providers delete data at most within 30 days; Zero Data Retention on some models; intended for users 18 or older | Source: duckduckgo.comchecked |
Answer first, then why, an example, the limits and what to do next.
Duck.ai is free to use with six models and no account, within a daily limit. Claude Sonnet 4.6 and GPT-5.6 Terra need the DuckDuckGo subscription at 9.99 USD a month, and Claude Opus 4.8 and GPT-5.6 Sol need Pro at 19.99 USD a month.
Duck.ai offers six free models as of October 17, 2026: Claude 4.5 Haiku, Mistral Small 4, GPT-6 Luna, GPT-5.4 mini, gpt-oss-120b and Gemma 4 31B. Plus adds GPT-5.6 Terra and Claude Sonnet 4.6, and Pro adds Claude Opus 4.8 and GPT-5.6 Sol. DuckDuckGo changes the list from time to time.
Duck.ai hides who you are from the AI companies, but your words still reach them. DuckDuckGo says it strips your IP address and metadata, keeps no chats on its servers and binds providers not to train on them. Anthropic may still keep chats where the law requires, the Privacy Terms allow providers up to 30 days, and we found no independent audit.
Duck.ai saves your chats only on your own device by default. Optional Sync & Backup keeps them on a DuckDuckGo server in end-to-end encrypted form and merges them across your devices, and the Fire Button inside Duck.ai deletes them.
DuckDuckGo publishes no fixed number of messages for Duck.ai. Limits depend on how costly the model is, reset at midnight UTC, are higher on Plus and twice as high again on Pro, and cannot be topped up without a subscription.
No public test has compared Duck.ai with Proton Lumo or Brave Leo head to head. Duck.ai lets you switch between models from several makers without an account; Proton says Lumo keeps no logs and encrypts saved chats so only you can read them; Brave says Leo collects no IP address; ChatGPT's temporary chat stays out of training, but OpenAI may keep a copy for up to 30 days.
This page is built from what can be checked today: DuckDuckGo's help pages, Privacy Terms and blog, reviews by TechRadar and Tom's Guide, and the official pages of Proton Lumo, Brave Leo and ChatGPT. Model names and prices are as DuckDuckGo listed them on October 17, 2026.
| Date | Event | Source |
|---|---|---|
| June 6, 2024 | DuckDuckGo AI Chat launches with GPT-3.5 Turbo, Claude 3 Haiku, Llama 3 and Mixtral 8x7B, free within a daily limit | DuckDuckGo |
| March 6, 2025 | Renamed Duck.ai and reachable at duck.ai; recent chats saved on the device | DuckDuckGo |
| September 4, 2025 | The 9.99 USD DuckDuckGo subscription adds GPT-4o, GPT-5, Claude Sonnet 4 and Llama Maverick | DuckDuckGo |
| February 2026 | Voice chat launches | TechRadar |
| March 18, 2026 | Pro plan at 19.99 USD a month with Claude Opus 4.6, GPT-5.2 and twice the Plus limits | DuckDuckGo |
| May 25, 2026 | DuckDuckGo's US app installs peak 30.5% above the week before, after Google's AI search changes; the figure covers DuckDuckGo's apps, not Duck.ai alone | Engadget |
| October 7, 2026 | Encrypted chat sharing | DuckDuckGo |
| Plan | Price | Duck.ai models |
|---|---|---|
| Free | 0 USD, no account | Claude 4.5 Haiku, Mistral Small 4, GPT-6 Luna, GPT-5.4 mini, gpt-oss-120b and Gemma 4 31B |
| Plus | 9.99 USD a month or 99.99 USD a year | The free models plus GPT-5.6 Terra and Claude Sonnet 4.6 |
| Pro | 19.99 USD a month or 199.99 USD a year | Plus models, Claude Opus 4.8 and GPT-5.6 Sol, higher reasoning effort, twice the Plus limits |
Source: DuckDuckGo's model list and price page. Plus also includes a VPN, Personal Information Removal (US only) and Identity Theft Restoration; euro and pound prices use the same figures. The subscription is sold in the US, UK, EU and Canada; Duck.ai itself works in any browser (DuckDuckGo). There is no AI-only plan, and outside a subscription there is no way to buy more usage (DuckDuckGo).
Everything in this section is DuckDuckGo's own description (privacy help page):
The wording is not the same everywhere. The Duck.ai Privacy Terms, updated October 1, 2026, say providers delete data at most within 30 days and offer Zero Data Retention only on some models, and that retention can run longer for safety and legal compliance. At launch in 2024 DuckDuckGo also promised deletion within 30 days. We found no independent audit of the proxy or the provider agreements.
| Service | What its maker says about your chats | Paid tier |
|---|---|---|
| Duck.ai | IP address removed, no training, provider deletion as described above | 9.99 or 19.99 USD a month, bundled with a VPN |
| Proton Lumo | No logs; saved chats under zero-access encryption; no training | Lumo Plus, 9.99 USD a month billed yearly |
| Brave Leo | No IP address or other identifiers collected; chats not kept for training; free use needs no account | Leo Premium; price not on Brave's Leo page |
| ChatGPT temporary chat | Kept out of history and training; OpenAI may keep a copy for up to 30 days for safety | ChatGPT's paid plans |
No public test has put these four side by side. Duck.ai's draw is choice: models from OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral and Google's Gemma in one place without an account.
Sources
Changelog
Xiaomi MiMo is Xiaomi's AI model family and platform: chat in MiMo AI Studio, an OpenAI- and Anthropic-compatible API, voice models, and coding and desktop agents. Its MiMo-V2.6-Pro, released with MIT-licensed weights on September 22, 2026, is the top open-weights model on Artificial Analysis's index as of October 17, 2026.
Gemini Notebook is Google's research notebook that answers from the sources you add and turns them into audio, video, reports and quizzes. Google renamed it from NotebookLM on July 16, 2026; it is the same standalone product, existing notebooks carried over, and notebooklm.google.com now redirects to notebook.google.com.
Grok is the chatbot from SpaceXSI, the Musk company formerly called xAI and then SpaceXAI, sold since October 13, 2026 in the X Subscription. Since January 2026 it has faced country blocks, investigations and lawsuits over sexualized deepfakes, and Canada's Privacy Commissioner found in June 2026 that X Corp. and xAI broke federal privacy law.
Character.AI is a chatbot app where people talk to characters other users create, made by Character Technologies. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on October 12, 2026, and Disney bid 20 million USD for a license to some assets; the app runs during the sale and will be wound down if no bid keeps it going.
VideoEnhancer is a web tool that upscales short MP4 clips to 1080p, 2K or 4K with the FlashVSR model and also compresses, face-swaps and generates video. After a 5-second free trial, 1080p costs 3 credits a second, $0.03 to $0.09 depending on how credits are bought. VideoEnhancer is our own product: it is made by the team behind GenGrades.
LayerGrab splits a flat image into up to 16 named, transparent layers over a filled-in background, on the web, in Figma or in Chrome, or pulls out only what you name. Each layer costs $0.10 on its $12 plan, $0.08 on Premium. No independent review exists yet. LayerGrab is our own product: it is made by the team behind GenGrades.