Mozilla added an AI off switch to Firefox — 1% of users have used it

Mozilla has added an option to Firefox that fully disables all AI features, following long-running demands from its community. The outcome is paradoxical: only 1% of the audience has actually used it.

Why the kill switch appeared

The request surfaced right after Mozilla announced a broad rollout of AI features in the browser. The community's reaction was unexpectedly sharp, especially around the time the new CEO, Anthony Enzor-DeMeo, was appointed. Users wanted more than transparency. They wanted a real control: a single button that turns everything off at once.

Mozilla listened. Firefox now has a "kill switch," a toggle that fully deactivates all of the browser's AI features. The company also added finer-grained controls: Smart Window, integration with VPN services and other AI tools can now be configured individually.

The move is unusual for the industry. Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge and most other major browsers build AI in as an integral part of the product, with no explicit opt-out. Mozilla bet on transparency and gave users what they asked for.

The numbers after launch

Once the new settings shipped, Mozilla began tracking how people used them. The figures CEO Enzor-DeMeo shared:

• 1% of users fully disabled all AI features through the main kill switch
• 3% selectively disabled individual features through the detailed settings
• 96% left everything at the defaults: AI on, settings untouched

UX research has long documented this pattern: people value having a choice, but almost always stick with the default. Most of those who publicly demanded an opt-out tool did not use it. The ability to control something matters psychologically more than the control itself.

Also telling: even among the 4% who changed their settings, most preferred selective control over a full shutdown. That points to a mixed attitude toward AI. People are willing to accept some features and want to refuse others.

The Mozilla CEO's position

"Our community was quite active, especially at the moment the CEO was announced, in saying that we need to provide a choice," —

Anthony Enzor-DeMeo.

According to the company's head, 1% is not a sign of failure. Firefox never aimed to push users away from AI. The goal was different: to give the audience a sense of control and to show that the browser does not make decisions for the person using it.

This is a deliberate positioning against competitors. Google Chrome integrates Gemini, Microsoft Edge actively promotes Copilot, and neither offers a "turn everything off" button. Firefox occupies a niche it created itself.

What this means

The Firefox AI kill switch is a clear example of the gap between public demand and actual behavior. A loud call for a control tool does not mean people will use it. But its presence changes how people see the product as a whole.

Tech companies can draw a few conclusions. First, offering users a formal choice reduces resistance to a product, even if almost nobody exercises it. Second, AI can be rolled out fairly confidently, since mass opt-out is unlikely to follow. Mozilla has obtained rare public evidence for both claims: data from a real browser, not from surveys.