Bing Copilot and DuckDuckGo AI Chat are two powerful generative AI-based chatbots that can summarize information, write emails, help with internet search, plan trips, tell recipes, and do more.
Both are free to use with a daily quota, but Bing Copilot also has a paid version with advanced features and higher usage limits. This article will compare both of them based on a few factors, such as ease of access, results quality, privacy, and extra features, after a general know-how about such tools.
What is Generative AI Chatbot?
Generative AI bot is a tool that leverage the power of large language models (such as GPT, Claude, Llama, etc.) within a chat interface. People use such tools for multiple routine things, including getting answers, creating images, brainstorming, writing, and data analysis.
Such tools came to light with the launch of ChatGPT in late 2022. At that time, the generative AI market was valued at USD 10.79 billion, which is now predicted to touch USD 118.06 billion by 2023 at a 27.02% CAGR. [1]
And guess who uses such tools the most?
Salesforce research reveals nearly 49% of the general population used genAI (short for generative AI) tools in 2023. 65% of those users were millennials and GenZ and 72% of the entire survey sample were employed. [2]
Currently, we have native genAI access within most of our devices, and our dependence on such “smart” chatbots is only going to rise.
So here we are with two options: Bing Copilot and DuckDuckGo AI Chat. Further sections explore these two in detail before comparing them in the end.
What is Bing Copilot?
Microsoft Copilot or Bing Copilot (formerly Bing Chat) was launched in February 2023 for a private preview and became available to the public in May. In November 2023, Microsoft rebranded Bing Chat and Bing Chat Enterprise as Copilot.
At present, it’s available to anyone using Microsoft Edge browser or Bing search. Users can also have it by visiting the URL copilot.microsoft.com with other web browsers, such as Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.
You don’t need a Microsoft account for using Copilot. But such users are subjected to a 10 query daily limit, whereas signing in offers 30 queries per conversation and access to old chats as well.
Previously, Copilot had three modes optimized for precision, creativity, and one offering a balance between the two. But the recent Copilot version does not offer that flexibility. Instead, it’s up to Copilot itself to choose the appropriate mode automatically based on the user input.
Copilot can also take voice input and create AI images. It’s based on GPT-4o and GPT-4 Turbo (most powerful GPT to date) as of now, with the high-end version accessible only during non-peak hours. However, one can switch to Copilot Pro for unrestricted availability to top end GPTs.
Copilot banks on DALL-E to create stunningly beautiful images, which can be directly exported to Microsoft Designer for further touch-ups.
Overall, the tool is pretty slick, particularly in providing an overview of search engine result pages (SERPs).
Here are a few prompts and their response via Microsoft Copilot.
Copilot’s responses, as you see in the above pictures, are good at day-to-day activities. Besides, they have started including images in their results, which is synonymous to a typical search engine experience. Finally, it supplements any lack of information with its citation support so that users can deep dive at the original data source.
What is DuckDuckGo AI Chat?
DuckDuckGo AI Chat is a free chatbot launched in June 2024. It provides access to four LLMs (currently, GPT-4o mini, Claude 3 Haiku, Llama 3.1 70B, and Mixtral 8x7B) from a single interface.
It does not ask for any registration and the chats are completely anonymous. DuckDuckGo does that by removing user metadata and IP address and querying the LLMs itself on their behalf.
We have agreements in place with all model providers to ensure that any saved chats are completely deleted by the providers within 30 days, and that none of the chats made on our platform can be used to train or improve the models.
Source: DuckDuckGo
It’s completely free, with an undisclosed daily usage limit. DuckDuckGo has mentioned plans for paid versions offering higher usage caps and more advanced models.
Users can try DuckDuckGo AI chat on any web browser by visiting duck.ai or duckduckgo.com/chat. Alternatively, one can use “bangs” (shortcuts, such as !ai or !chat) to launch it within the DuckDuckGo web browser.
DuckDuckGo AI Chat is in beta as of this writing and lacks a few important features, such as an option to save chats for the ongoing browsing session or permanently on the local device until the user deletes them on their own. Even a simple refresh clears the conversation, prompting the user to start again.
This means that you can’t jump between conversations–a feature readily available with other such AI chatbots, including Copilot, ChatGPT, Claude, and Mistral. Similarly, users can’t change devices and carry on with their chats.
So, while it’s the most private genAI experience to date, its practical use is confined to a few random chats without any long-term or sustainable professional application.
Check out a few responses I got with DuckDuckGo AI Chat (GPT-4o).
Coming from Bing Copilot, DuckDuckGo AI Chat responses feel monotonous due to it being a text-only interface at present. Also, selecting the right AI model for a specific query, while useful for experts, adds to the cognitive overhead for the beginners. This can be a problem for newcomers, leading to less accurate results than if they had chosen the right AI.
But since DuckDuckGo AI Chat is still in beta, its future versions will probably iron out some of these kinks and offer better value.
Bing Copilot Vs. DuckDuckGo AI Chat
Here is a table that compares both of these AI chatbots on a few critical elements, including base AI models, content support, privacy, and more.
| Factors | Bing Copilot | DuckDuckGo AI Chat |
|---|---|---|
| Model architecture | GPT | GPT, Claude, Llama, & Mixtral |
| Content support | Text, audio, and images | Text |
| Device access | Web browsers | Web browsers |
| Privacy | Data processing by Microsoft in Copilot free | No data processing by DuckDuckGo or any third-party |
| Paid plans | Yes, for higher usage and more capable models | No paid tiers yet |
| Language compatibility | 20+, including English, German, French, Korean, Chinese, Russian, and Japanese | Multiple languages based on the selected AI model |
| Extra features | Response copy, sharing, feedback, text-to-speech, and resource citation | Response copy and regeneration |
The Cost of Privacy!
DuckDuckGo AI Chat and Copilot, although look similar on the surface, are meant entirely for different use cases.
Copilot (business version) is well integrated with Office 365, proving its worth for business applications. Even the personal version, which is free, can serve routine activities (such as creating text and images) with commendable efficiency. Additionally, one can also use it without registering with Microsoft.
DuckDuckGo AI Chat is best for those who want the choice of AI models and privacy (without an off switch).
At this stage, Copilot is simply more productive and better. And if DuckDuckGo AI Chat ever wants to catch up, it has to offer wider content type support, flexible privacy levels, auto AI selection at the very least.
Next, explore more Chatbots like ChatGPT.