Firefox Announces 'AI Controls' To Block Its Upcoming AI Features (mozilla.org)
- Reference: 0180751846
- News link: https://news.slashdot.org/story/26/02/07/073233/firefox-announces-ai-controls-to-block-its-upcoming-ai-features
- Source link: https://blog.mozilla.org/en/firefox/ai-controls/
"Listening to our community, alongside our ongoing commitment to offer choice, led us to build AI controls."
> Starting with Firefox 148, which rolls out on Feb. 24, you'll find a new AI controls section within the desktop browser settings. It provides a single place to block current and future generative AI features in Firefox... This lets you use Firefox without AI while we continue to build AI features for those who want them...
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> At launch, AI controls let you manage these features individually:
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> — Translations, which help you browse the web in your preferred language.
> — Alt text in PDFs, which add accessibility descriptions to images in PDF pages.
> — AI-enhanced tab grouping, which suggests related tabs and group names.
> — Link previews, which show key points before you open a link.
> — AI chatbot in the sidebar, which lets you use your chosen chatbot as you browse, including options like Anthropic Claude, ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, Google Gemini and Le Chat Mistral.
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> You can choose to use some of these and not others. If you don't want to use AI features from Firefox at all, you can turn on the Block AI enhancements toggle. When it's toggled on, you won't see pop-ups or reminders to use existing or upcoming AI features. Once you set your AI preferences in Firefox, they stay in place across updates... We believe choice is more important than ever as AI becomes a part of people's browsing experiences. What matters to us is giving people control, no matter how they feel about AI.
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> If you'd like to try AI controls early, they'll be available first in [2]Firefox Nightly .
[3]Some context from The Register
> It's a refreshingly unsubtle stance, and one that lands just days after a similar bout of AI skepticism elsewhere in browser land, with Vivaldi's latest release [4]leaning away from generative features entirely . CEO Jon von Tetzchner summed up the mood, telling The Register: "Basically, what we are finding is that people hate AI..." Mozilla's kill switch isn't the end of AI in browsers, but it does suggest the hype has met resistance.
When it comes to AI kill switches in browsers, Jack Wallen writes at ZDNet that "Most browsers [5]already offer this feature . With Edge, you can disable Copilot. [6]With Chrome, you can disable Gemini . With Opera, you can disable Aria...."
[1] https://blog.mozilla.org/en/firefox/ai-controls/
[2] https://www.firefox.com/channel/desktop/
[3] https://www.theregister.com/2026/02/03/firefox_ai_kill_switch/
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2026/01/29/vivaldi_release_ai/
[5] https://www.zdnet.com/article/firefox-turn-off-ai-features-switch-how-to/
[6] https://www.zdnet.com/article/how-to-turn-off-gemini-in-your-gmail-photos-chrome-and-more-its-easy-to-opt-out-of-ai/
Re: (Score:2)
The translation feature has been useful to me a couple of times.
Re: (Score:2)
Yeah, the translation feature is constantly helpful for people living in multilingual environments (the model training and FF integration were funded by the EU), and generally people not native in English everywhere. It has helped me with technical documentation available in Chinese, and it's a convenient way to have access to certain topics of Wikipedia without leaking my interests to Google.
I don't get ethe anti-AI hate wrt Firefox. Mozilla does not host AI cloud services, FF uses a local model, what is n
Re: (Score:2)
"did everything well from day 1"
Re: (Score:2)
Well, I have found AI tools to be mildly useful when searching something you do not know the name for. That does in no way offset all the negative impact they have.
Re: (Score:2)
Similar here. Sometimes AI can help make a start on a topic. I also tried bouncing ideas off it too, but it's too arse kissing to be of much use. Same with reviews of my ideas.
Already blocked updates (Score:2)
I already blocked updates and managed to stop the update nagging after the AI features were announced, I'm not undoing that.
Re: (Score:3)
> I already blocked updates and managed to stop the update nagging after the AI features were announced, I'm not undoing that.
The malware vendors of the world thank you for your service.
Re: (Score:2)
Exactly why did you block updates (including security updates), instead of changing to Firefox ESR wich will not push a new version to you until aug 2026? That way you receive security updates, but no new features (including those AI features you so despise) until Aug 2026...
Call me a fanboi (Score:2)
Cause AI tab grouping seems legit. Currently using treestyle tabs and managing many tabs (hundred+).
Some of that other stuff will probably get disabled here at home. IMO, you're a bit silly if you think that AI can't do anything useful.
Re: (Score:2)
> IMO, you're a bit silly if you think that AI can't do anything useful.
Pure appeal to emotion, i.e. a statement of negative value and validity. If that is what you have, you are not worthy of any trust.
Nice (Score:2)
You could already turn these off in Firefox with about:config entries, but this is a welcome addition to have the settings in an easier place for people (in "settings").
Yay? (Score:2)
Finally! A new Firefox "feature" that I won't immediately want to disable, but... it's simply to help disable other new "features". Yay?
Keep "AI" out of the browser core. (Score:2)
How about... make the AI as add-ons and people can choose to install them in their browser - but don't put "AI" into the main browser at all? That seems a lot more logical and less controversial.
Some don't want AI bloat! I'm shocked! (Score:2)
So Mozilla ignored them, but added a fake dashboard to make users think they can turn things AI off! Because forcing out AI "features" is what the C-suite is getting paid for.
Re: (Score:2)
They need to add a feature: ./configure --with-no-ai --go-fuck-yourself.
That might handle it.