DuckDuckGo

Founded in 2008 and based in Pennsylvania, US, Duck Duck Go, Inc. , aka DuckDuckGo is an independent Internet privacy company. The company closed a Series A funding from Union Square Ventures in 2011. In 2018, DuckDuckGo launched the desktop browser extension and mobile browser that can block third-party trackers.

In 2019, the company launched another functionality for its product - an extension that can direct users to encrypted versions of websites so that user privacy can be protected. Moreover, in June 2021, new investors GP Bullhound, Impact America Fund, Thrive Capital, and returning investor OMERS Ventures, as well as other individual investors acquired a stake in DuckDuckGo for USD 100 million. The firm has over 100 million users globally. DuckDuckGo offers an all-in-one privacy protection solution alternative to Google Search through the DuckDuckGo web browser and that is available on mobile and desktop devices, or as an extension on other browsers.

The main feature of the company's product, DuckDuckGo, is the traceless functionality. By stopping trackers from other apps or websites, the app can avoid loading ads, and speed up the websites and protect user's privacy. DuckDuckGo also offers its recently launched feature - DuckDuckGo Email Protection Tracker which is a free email forwarding service that removes multiple types of hidden email trackers and creates unlimited unique private email addresses. DuckDuckGo is free for users.

The company generates its revenue from advertising. Advertising on DuckDuckGo takes the form of sponsored links that appear adjacent to search results, and it is managed by Microsoft’s ad network. Users search keywords such as 'cars' on DuckDuckGo, they can see search results page they're viewing instead of being based on other companies tracking algorithms assuming the user is a person.