AI Crawler Directory · DuckDuckGo
DuckAssistBot:
what it is and how to verify it.
OperatorDuckDuckGo
PurposeAI-assisted answers
Respects robots.txtYes
Executes JavaScriptNo
Hits verifiableYes — published IPs
TypeHTTP crawler / fetcher
Opt-outs take effect within about 72 hours per DuckDuckGo’s documentation.
DuckAssistBot fetches web pages in real time to power DuckAssist — DuckDuckGo’s AI-assisted answers, which prominently cite their sources. Each fetch supports a live answer being composed for a user, making it a citation-channel bot rather than a training crawler: DuckDuckGo states the collected data is not used to train AI models.
It is among the most webmaster-friendly AI bots: it honors robots.txt (opt-outs apply within about 72 hours), opting out does not affect your organic DuckDuckGo rankings, and the complete IP list is published both human-readable and as JSON for verification.
For sites tracking AI visibility, DuckAssistBot is the DuckDuckGo counterpart to OAI-SearchBot or PerplexityBot — the crawl that precedes a cited answer, with privacy-conscious users on the other end.
DuckAssistBot User-Agent string
DuckAssistBot/1.2; (+http://duckduckgo.com/duckassistbot.html)How to verify DuckAssistBot hits are real
The User-Agent header is plain text — any client can claim to be DuckAssistBot, and scrapers routinely do. DuckDuckGo publishes DuckAssistBot’s full IP list as JSON for verification.
https://duckduckgo.com/duckassistbot.jsonFetch the list and check the hit’s source IP against it — for a quick manual look:
curl -s https://duckduckgo.com/duckassistbot.jsonAllow or block DuckAssistBot in robots.txt
This is a user-triggered fetcher: each request is a live human asking about your page. Blocking it hides your content from users at the exact moment they want it.
Allow
User-agent: DuckAssistBot
Allow: /Block
User-agent: DuckAssistBot
Disallow: /DuckAssistBot — frequently asked questions
What is DuckAssistBot?
DuckAssistBot is DuckDuckGo’s crawler for DuckAssist, the AI-assisted answers feature. It fetches pages in real time so answers can cite their sources. DuckDuckGo states the data is not used for AI model training.
Does blocking DuckAssistBot hurt my DuckDuckGo rankings?
No. DuckDuckGo documents that opting out of DuckAssistBot does not impact organic search rankings or visibility — it only removes you from AI-assisted answers. Opt-outs take effect within about 72 hours.
How do I verify DuckAssistBot hits?
Check the source IP against duckduckgo.com/duckassistbot.json — DuckDuckGo publishes the complete list in machine-readable form precisely so sites can authenticate traffic.
Does DuckAssistBot train AI models on my content?
No — DuckDuckGo explicitly states DuckAssist data is not used to train AI models. Fetches only power live, source-cited answers.
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