How do I disable the "Artificial Intelligence (AI) Host [etc]" feature?

Anonymous

We have started getting complaints from our customers over this "feature" as it appears to be quite the resource hog, and of course they are blaming our add-ins.

Killing the ai.exe process appears to have no ill effect on the usability of Office programs such as Word, Outlook or Excel.

So I need to know how we can disable it. I'd prefer to give an instruction to our users on how they can switch off a feature they do not want, they feel they do not need, and that causes their old PCs to start sounding like a Harrier Jet taking off.

Thank you

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Anonymous

This seems to work. There are all sorts of solutions put out there that involve things like editing the Registry. Here's a much easier fix that seems to have worked for me (and this is from The Geek Page https://thegeekpage.com/how-to-disable-the-artificial-intelligence-ai-host-feature/).

First, the obvious: delete the AI executables from the OFFICE folder:
ai.exe

ai.exe
aitrx.dll

Second - this is incredibly easy. Deleting the executables does not completely work because Office automatically updates itself with new copies of those files.

Since the AI Host runs when you use an Office app:
Disable the Office app updates.

To do this, open any Office application, like Word.

– Click the “File” menu and then the “Account” menu item - this may be under the "More..." menu item, in which case click "More..." and then click "Account"

– There, click on “Update Options”, which brings up a popup menu - on the popup menu, set that to “Disable Updates” to disable Office updates for all Office apps

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240 additional answers

Anonymous

2023-09-11T17:14:43+00:00

Paul,

Will give it a try. I have a group policy fix that myself and another figured out that I like to use - especially on an AD domain. But I found it doesn't work on Home version of Win 10/11. Enabling gpedit on Home then adding the policy entries seems ignored. So this you offer here might be the trick. I don't see many Home version systems - Pro mostly. I'll keep ot so I can try - will try on Pro too...
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Anonymous

2023-09-11T16:53:50+00:00
I may have found a way to disable this, but if I post it here, will M$ workaround it.

The application could possibly be disabled using the DisallowRun registry key...
1. Open regedit and navigate to **HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies**.
2. Ensure that the Explorer key exists here. If it doesn't, then create it
  
  Right click Policies.
  
  Select New > Key.
  
  Enter Explorer.
  
  Navigate to the new Explorer key.
  
  Right click inside the key and select New > DWORD.
  
  Set the name to DisallowRun and set its value to 1.
  
  Right click the Explorer key and select New > Key.
  
  Name this key as DisallowRun.
3. Navigate to DisallowRun and check the latest value in the list.
4. Right click in the key and select New > String and name it as the next sequence number.
5. Edit this string and enter ai.exe.
This may or may not work. I've only discovered it but haven't been able to test it yet. Let me know your successes.

Kind regards,

Paul.
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Anonymous

2023-08-28T11:59:48+00:00

Either it becomes easy to switch on and off the new Microsoft AI enhanced browser or it isn't. If it isn't easy to do and I'm not happy with it and I'll simply have to use another browser. That should have been baked into your decisions in the first place
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Anonymous

2023-08-25T17:17:56+00:00

YRP_1161, Hi again. I suppose it depends on the environment, whats acceptable on the computers...what kind of organization.... whether the computer is business owned or personal. My approach is, if its business owned - the business has all say over what runs on them and how they are used. For obvious reasons - you really don't want employees just doing what they will or browsing all day long with the computers. If you are say, working with realtors... where they use their own computers, then yes - maybe let them destroy theire computers, UNLESS they are joined to company domains... I have learned that you really have to have rules with acceptable use of computers... though its hard to get a business to even draw up that form in the first place. If I have users infecting the computers all the time - on a domain, then its time to get into group poicy and restrict them.

Now AI.EXE.... Ok we don't like it... we don't want it... we do not know what all it does or will be doing... Unless there is some good reason for an individual to need AI.EXE running... I will just take it out... the user never knowing. On business computers, to keep things stable... and I have done this on personally owned computers - and I explain this to the owner, what it is, why I dsiabled it... escpecially if the system is quirky or unstable... not an objection yet.

IF... someday... we find we really should allow this to run??? If they develop some wonderful thing (its all.... "wonderful"...*gag*...) and this has to be available? Well... then we might need to remove the blocking we created...

Thanks for the info on what can be donew in a mixed environment group policy.... that can be useful in the future if I run in to that need. Thanks! Appreciate you looking at that.

I agree with you entirely,,, and not disagreeing here... its just my clients are all in a position where I don't think any of them understand what AI is and sure aren't using any... I do not know any AI users.... LOL.... if I do... they aren't affected apparently....
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