Ask.com, formerly Ask Jeeves, officially ended its search engine business on May 1, 2026, after nearly 30 years of operation [1]. Founded in 1996 and launching its beta version in 1997, Ask Jeeves became known for its natural language search approach before rebranding as Ask.com in 2006 [1].
The company stopped developing its own internal search tools in 2010 and had limited significant activity related to search since then [1]. In a farewell message, Ask.com expressed gratitude to its users and staff, stating, "Every great search must come to an end" and assuring that "Jeeves’ spirit endures." The message also noted the decision to discontinue the search business as part of parent company IAC’s focus shift and thanked "the millions of users who turned to us for answers in a rapidly changing world" [1].
The timeline of Ask.com spans from its founding in 1996, launch in 1997, rebranding in 2006, to ceasing internal development in 2010, culminating in the shutdown in 2026 [1]. While the farewell message references 25 years of answering questions, the actual operational timeframe from 1996 to 2026 covers nearly 30 years, which has caused some confusion [1].
Ask.com’s closure marks the end of one of the earlier search engines that helped popularize question-and-answer style web search during the rise of the internet. The company thanked the "brilliant engineers, designers, and teams who built and supported Ask over the decades" for their contributions [1].
