Product Overview: Mojeek
Introduction
Mojeek is a UK-based, independent search engine founded in 2004 by Marc Smith, with a strong focus on user privacy, transparency, and unbiased search results. Unlike many mainstream search engines, Mojeek operates its own crawler-based index, ensuring that its search results are not influenced by or dependent on other major search indexes like Google or Bing.
Key Features
Independent Index and Ranking
Mojeek uses its own crawler, known as MojeekBot, to index web pages. This index is built from the ground up, and the search results are ordered using Mojeek’s proprietary ranking algorithms. This independence means that the search results are unique and not replicated from other search engines, providing users with a diverse set of results.
Privacy and Transparency
Mojeek is committed to user privacy. It does not track, profile, or personalize search results, ensuring an unbiased and transparent search experience. This approach sets Mojeek apart as a privacy-respecting alternative in the search engine market.
Speed and Performance
Mojeek’s search results are generated directly from its own index, eliminating the need to send queries to other search engines. This results in fast response times, with a median response time of 88ms for the majority of queries.
Advanced Search Functionality
- Search Choices: Users can easily switch between Mojeek and other search engines directly from the results page, allowing for customization and comparison of search results.
- Customization Options: Mojeek offers various settings, such as the ability to control the number of news results displayed and a Substack-only search option, which is beneficial for those seeking independent content.
AI Search Summary
Mojeek is experimenting with an AI search summary feature that uses a Large Language Model (LLM) to generate summaries of the top search results. This feature, activated by a “Summarise these results” button, helps users quickly identify relevant information without having to navigate through multiple pages.
Extensive Index
As of October 2022, Mojeek’s index contains over 6 billion web pages, making it a comprehensive resource for web searches. This extensive index is continuously updated by Mojeek’s crawlers and indexers.
Technology Stack
Mojeek’s technology stack includes crawlers that fetch web pages, indexers that extract content and links, and a sophisticated ranking system that considers factors such as the number of incoming links and the content quality of the pages. The backend uses technologies like lighttpd, PHP, Postgres, and Redis to deliver fast and relevant search results.
Integration and Accessibility
Mojeek can be integrated into various browsers and devices, including Chrome, Firefox, Vivaldi, and mobile apps for iOS and Android. It has also become the default search engine for several privacy-focused browsers like Privacy Browser, Pale Moon, and SerenityOS.
In summary, Mojeek offers a unique blend of independence, privacy, and advanced search functionality, making it a compelling alternative for users seeking unbiased and transparent search results.