Given this trend, it should hardly come as a surprise that during I/O 2026, Google announced "a new era for AI Search." This "era" essentially marks an expansion of its investment in AI in Search: In addition to rolling out its new Gemini 3.5 Flash model to Search, Google is making it even easier to use its AI-generated results (or, perhaps, harder to avoid them). You can now expand an AI Overview to continue the conversation in AI Mode, and keep receiving answers without engaging with any primary sources yourself. Google will also soon offer select users access to Search "agents," which can take actions on your behalf on the web.
Google's goal is to make Search synonymous with AI, which will no doubt please Google's investors, but will also alienate some users. Many of still search Google seeking good results for our queries, and not AI-generated summaries and chats. Personally, I'm not interested in "continuing the conversation" with Google's AI: I want to find relevant websites to read and explore. As such, I went looking for Google Search alternatives that either don't use AI, or let you disable all AI features entirely. Here are five of your best options.
Kagi
Credit: LifehackerBy default, Kagi keeps its AI "Quick Answer" setting behind a keyboard shortcut. If you want to use it, you'll need to enter a question mark at the end of your query. If you don't use question marks, you'll never see Kagi's version of AI Overviews, but you can also disable the feature entirely from Kagi's settings. That way, even if you ask Kagi a more formal question, you'll get the usual website links—not an AI-generated answer. Kagi also includes an option (appropriately called SlopStop) to block certain results that the search engine believes are AI-generated. That applies to both image and video results, too.
Kagi not only allows you to return to a simpler time of endless blue links and zero AI-generated answers, but it actively works to block any known AI content from entering your feed. The only downside is that Kagi isn't free: With other search engines, you pay for your use by being shown ads, but with Kagi, you pay with actual money. Your first 100 searches are free, and paid plans start at $5 per month.
Startpage
Credit: LifehackerThese privacy perks aside, Starpage has few AI features to worry about. By default, you shouldn't have to deal with them at all on the web app, but you can check under settings for any that may appear—Startpage says it has an optional Summary feature that uses AI to generate result synopses, but I don't even have the option in my Startpage settings. (Summary appears to be separate from Startpage's Instant Answer feature, which doesn't seem to use AI, but which can also be turned off in settings.) It's a similar story on mobile: If you're using the iOS app, the company says it offers optional AI features, but I don't see them in my settings there either. The company also offers a private AI app called Vanish, but that's unrelated to its search engine.
Startpage isn't as feature-filled as other search engines, but that might be to its benefit. In my experience, it offers a standard search experience out of the box, without much (if any) AI.
Qwant
Credit: LifehackerThe first time you use Qwant—at least, in my experience—Flash Answer will appear if Qwant's AI deems it appropriate. You'll see the option at the top of the search results window, complete with stars that denote its AI abilities. Click "Flash Answer," then choose "Deactivated," rather than "Activated by Qwant" (the default), or "Always activated." Unfortunately, it doesn't look like you can strip away the option itself, so you'll always have to stare at the "Flash Answer" button, but at least you can quickly scroll down to view your straightforward links.
DuckDuckGo
Credit: LifeahckerIn DuckDuckGo's search engine, click the three lines to find the site's Settings. Here, choose "AI Features," where you'll see all of DuckDuckGo's AI options. Disable Duck.ai, then set Search Assist to "Never." Finally, you can choose to hide AI-generated images, if you really want a search engine experience devoid of AI.
Ecosia
Credit: LifehackerWhile Ecosia's main mission hasn't changed, it has added new AI features to the mix. Notably, there are now Overviews, which are Ecosia's AI-generated summaries, as well as AI Chat, which uses models from OpenAI to run. While Overviews are enabled by default, you can disable them at any time from Ecosia's settings (which you'll find at the bottom of any given search results). However, Ecosia doesn't let you disable its AI Chat button, even if you aren't using the feature. That might not be a dealbreaker for you, since the feature isn't engaged unless you click the button, but it's a bit disappointing that Ecosia forces you to look at an invitation to use AI Chat every time you search.
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