With opinions on artificial intelligence still sharply divided, Mozilla recently announced plans to turn Firefox into an AI-powered browser—while reassuring users that AI features would remain entirely optional. Now, the company is backing up that promise.
Starting with Firefox 148, scheduled for release later this month, Mozilla is introducing a long-awaited AI “kill switch”, giving users the ability to completely disable AI features if they choose. Beyond a single on/off option, Firefox also offers more detailed controls for users who prefer to fine-tune what AI tools they use—or don’t use.
Firefox 148 will begin rolling out on February 24, and desktop users will see a new AI Controls section added to the browser’s settings. While Mozilla believes AI can enhance the browsing experience, it also acknowledges that AI isn’t for everyone—and it’s designing Firefox to respect that choice.
For users who want to explore AI features, Firefox 148 launches with several AI-powered tools, including:
Translations allowing users to browse websites in their preferred language.
Alt text generation in PDFs, improving accessibility by adding image descriptions to PDF documents.
AI-enhanced tab grouping, which suggests related tabs and automatically names groups.
Link previews, showing key highlights before you open a webpage.
An AI chatbot in the sidebar, supporting popular options such as Anthropic Claude, ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, Google Gemini, and Le Chat Mistral.
Importantly, Mozilla emphasizes that these features are fully customizable. Users can enable only the tools they want—or disable everything at once.
“If you don’t want to use AI features from Firefox at all, you can turn on the Block AI enhancements toggle,” Mozilla explains. When enabled, users won’t see AI pop-ups, prompts, or reminders about current or future AI tools.
This “Block AI enhancements” toggle effectively acts as Firefox’s AI kill switch, striking a balance between innovation and user control. Mozilla says its approach is designed to “let you use Firefox without AI while we continue to build AI features for those who want them.”
To give users a closer look, Mozilla has also shared a preview video showcasing the new AI controls and how they work in practice.
Staying ahead of any queries users may have about the “stickiness” of these settings, Mozilla offers the following assurances:
Once you set your AI preferences in Firefox, they stay in place across updates. You can also change them whenever you want.
The organization concludes by saying:
AI controls give you more say in how you move across the web.
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.
If you’d like to try AI controls early, they’ll be available first in Firefox Nightly.