How to Turn Off AI on Each Device and App, One at a Time

Where the AI Switch Is on Every Device and App

There is no single switch that turns off artificial intelligence (AI) everywhere, so you turn it off product by product. Phones, Windows and Microsoft 365 let you switch their assistants off, while Meta AI and Google AI Overviews have workarounds only.

If you want less AI in the apps you already use, start with the row for each one. Where a product has no switch, the table says so.

Why There Is No Master Switch

Several companies control their AI features separately, so one setting does not reach them all.

Meta has no account-wide switch across Facebook, Messenger, Instagram and WhatsApp. Our Windows Copilot guide says Windows Copilot, Microsoft 365 Copilot and Edge's AI features are controlled separately.

Microsoft has no one switch for all of those features. Our Gemini on Android guide says each Google AI switch is separate, and changing one does not change the others.

Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet share no switch. Turning off a notetaker in one leaves the other two unchanged. TikTok, Pinterest, Amazon and Spotify have no single switch that turns off AI across them.

Settings can also stack up within one company. In Word, the Enable Copilot checkbox works per app and per device. Turning it off in Word leaves Excel and PowerPoint on.

Your Phone: Apple Intelligence, Galaxy AI and Gemini

On an iPhone, the steps depend on the iOS version. On iOS 18 and iOS 26, our Apple guide gives one switch: Settings > Apple Intelligence & Siri > Apple Intelligence. Our guide says Apple states that this removes the on-device models.

Apple's iOS 27 guide works differently. It says you can turn off Apple Intelligence features like Siri AI (Beta) and summarization features, and it lists a switch for each one. The main paths are these:

• Siri AI (Beta): Settings > Siri > Turn Off Siri, then confirm.
• Notification summaries: Settings > Notifications > Summarize Notifications.
• Message summaries: Settings > Apps > Messages > Summarize Messages.
• Email summaries: Settings > Apps > Mail > Summarize Message Previews.

Apple points to Screen Time for restricting access to Apple Intelligence features. On iOS 27, Siri's on-screen awareness has no dedicated off switch, according to our guide. Apple says Apple Intelligence uses up to 14 GB of on-device storage on some models and up to 8 GB on others.

Samsung's Galaxy AI has one main switch. Our Galaxy AI guide gives this path, which is not yet verified against Samsung: Settings > Galaxy AI, then turn on Process data only on device. Our Galaxy AI guide says some models use Advanced features > Intelligent features instead.

Our Galaxy AI guide says that setting makes Galaxy AI skip Samsung's servers and turns off cloud-only tools. Circle to Search and Now Bar need separate switches. Our Galaxy AI guide doesn't cite a Samsung help page for these menu paths.

On Android, deleting the Gemini app does not remove Gemini as your default digital assistant, Google says. To switch the assistant, follow these steps in the Gemini app.

1. Open the Gemini app and tap Menu.
2. Tap your profile picture or initial, then tap Switch to Google Assistant.
3. In the dialog, tap Switch.

You can also go to Settings > Apps > Default apps > Digital assistant app > Default digital assistant app, then pick another assistant or None. Google says the steps vary by device. Our Gemini guide says some newer phones may not offer the older Assistant.

If you switch, Google says data in Gemini Apps Activity is not deleted automatically. Gemini in Gmail, Circle to Search and Gemini in Chrome each have their own switch.

In Android Auto, AI message summaries have their own switch. Google's help page calls it Message Summary under Settings > Notifications. Google says, "Artificial intelligence generates your message summaries so there could be mistakes."

Your Computer and Office Apps: Copilot and Gemini

On Windows 11, go to Settings > Personalization > Taskbar and toggle Copilot off to hide the icon. Our Windows guide says that does not always stop Win+C or a Copilot key from opening the app.

Microsoft says the Copilot app is automatically enabled after you install certain Windows updates, unless a group policy blocked it first. Microsoft's Learn page says the legacy Turn Off Windows Copilot policy is subject to near-term deprecation and recommends AppLocker instead.

Enterprise users can uninstall the Copilot app at Settings > Apps > Installed Apps. Microsoft's RemoveMicrosoftCopilotApp policy works differently. It removes the app only when Microsoft 365 Copilot and Microsoft Copilot are both installed. The user must not have installed the app, and it must not have been launched in the last 28 days.

Microsoft says users can still re-install the app if they choose to. The policy page says the policy applies to Enterprise, Professional and Education editions only. The policy doesn't cover Windows 11 Home.

In Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Outlook, Copilot is controlled per app. On Windows, go to File > Options > Copilot and clear Enable Copilot. On a Mac, open the app menu, choose Preferences > Authoring and Proofing Tools > Copilot, then clear Enable Copilot.

Microsoft says you can't turn off Copilot in the iOS, Android or web versions of Word, Excel or PowerPoint. Outlook works differently. Its choice applies to all your devices on the same account. It is set at Settings > Copilot on the web, or Quick Settings > Copilot on Android and iOS.

Our Word guide gives one fallback. Turn off experiences that analyze your content in the privacy settings. That also turns off text predictions in Word, PowerPoint Designer and suggested replies in Outlook.

Google gives personal accounts no on/off switch for Gemini inside Google Docs. Our Docs guide says the Gemini bar automatically minimizes by default. On a work or school account, an admin can turn Gemini off for Docs, Drive or Sheets.

The admin path is Admin console > Generative AI > Gemini for Workspace > Feature access. Google's admin help says, "The default setting for Gemini features in Workspace services is on."

Search, Email and Browsers

Google AI Overviews have no off switch. Google's help page says, "AI Overviews are a core Google Search feature, like knowledge panels. Features cannot be turned off."

Google's help page also says the Web filter "displays only text-based links without features like AI Overviews." You can select it after you perform a search. Adding udm=14 to a Google search address loads the same web-only view, but Google doesn't document that parameter.

Chrome on desktop and Firefox 140 and later can save that address as the default search engine. Safari and Chrome for Android cannot. The steps are in our AI Overviews guide.

The AI in Search toggle in Labs ends enrollment in Search experiments. It does not remove AI Overviews.

In Chrome, go to More > Settings > AI innovations > Gemini in Chrome. Under Preferences, turn off Show Gemini at the top of the browser. On a Mac, also turn off "Show Gemini in Mac menu bar and turn on keyboard shortcut."

On Windows, use the matching Show Gemini in system tray option. Chrome also shares your current tab with Gemini by default when you start a new chat. Turn off Share current tab by default to stop that.

AI Mode in the address bar has its own control. Right-click the address bar and clear Always show AI Mode. History search, Help me write and Tab organizer sit at chrome://settings/ai. Chrome settings do not touch AI Overviews, Gmail or the Android assistant.

Gmail has two separate settings. "Turn on smart features in Gmail, Chat, and Meet" sits under Settings > See all settings > General > Smart features. Google Workspace smart features sits under General > Manage Workspace smart feature settings.

Turning off the first setting removes automatic email categorization, Smart Compose, Smart Reply and summary cards above emails. The Workspace setting covers "Ask Gemini to summarize content, create drafts, and find key information."

Google says changes "apply across all devices and apps where you're signed in." It also says some changes made on your computer do not reflect in the mobile app. Conversation summaries and Smart Reply in Chat keep their own switches, and they can stay on.

Social Apps: Meta AI, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and Others

Facebook and Messenger have no setting that turns Meta AI off permanently. There is no way to remove the Ask Meta AI option from Facebook search or the Ask Meta AI prompt below posts.

In a Messenger chat, go to Information > Privacy & support > Message permissions, then turn off Allow message sharing. That blocks Meta AI features in that chat only.

Facebook group AI is on by default for eligible groups. A group admin can turn it off at Manage > Your group's AI > Disable. Sending /reset-ai in a chat deletes Meta's copy of that conversation.

Instagram has no setting to turn off Meta AI or hide the Ask Meta AI prompt in the search bar. WhatsApp has no setting to remove, hide or disable the Meta AI button or Meta AI in the search bar.

WhatsApp's Restricted chat stops people in that chat from using Meta AI features, exporting the chat, auto-saving media and using linked devices. You turn it on chat by chat, and in groups only admins can turn it on.

WhatsApp says Restricted chat is replacing Advanced chat privacy. Chats with Advanced chat privacy on do not update automatically. WhatsApp also says Meta AI can only access the messages people choose to send it, whether restricted chat is on or off.

In the European Union and the United Kingdom, Meta offers an objection form for AI training on your data. The form does not remove Meta AI from the apps.

Snapchat's My AI can be unpinned or cleared. Swipe right from the Camera screen to Chat, press and hold My AI, then tap Chat and Notification Settings.

From there, tap Unpin Conversation or Clear from Chat Feed. Snap's help page says clearing does not delete data you previously shared with My AI. Deleting that data is a separate step.

Snap's help pages don't show a switch that turns off My AI completely on an adult account. In Family Center, parents can turn on Disable My AI for a teen. Snapchat has no master switch for all AI features.

TikTok has an AI-generated content slider in Manage topics. It turns AI videos down in the For You feed but does not remove them. It may not have reached every account.

Pinterest's GenAI interests controls reduce AI pins in some categories. They do not remove them. Reddit has no setting to turn off its AI search answers, which run only when you select Ask.

LinkedIn's Data for Generative AI Improvement setting is on by default. Opting out stops future training but does not affect training that has already taken place.

LinkedIn also says feedback you submit may still be used to train its models after you opt out. On X, go to Privacy & Safety > Data sharing and personalization > Grok & Third-party Collaborators, then clear the training option. Grok stays usable after the opt-out.

Our other-platforms guide, citing third-party sites, says Amazon has no official setting to turn off its shopping assistant on web or mobile. TikTok, Pinterest, Amazon and Spotify have no single switch across them, so each app needs its own steps.

Meetings and Video: AI Notetakers and YouTube Auto-Dubbing

Our notetaker guide says Zoom AI Companion is turned off in the web portal at Account Management > Account Settings > AI Companion, by someone with admin rights. That guide draws its Zoom and Microsoft Teams steps from community posts, gHacks and Windows Latest. Zoom and Microsoft haven't confirmed those steps on their own help pages.

Google Meet works differently. Go to Settings > Meeting records and set it to off, or clear Take notes with Gemini. Our notetaker guide cites Google's Workspace admin help for these steps.

Turning off a notetaker in one app leaves the other two unchanged. A participant who did not organize the call cannot turn off the host's built-in notetaker. They have to ask the host.

YouTube has no universal off switch for automatic dubbing. It also has no setting to turn off Ask YouTube or Ask Music.

To change the audio for one video, select Settings > Audio track in the player, then choose your preferred language. For a lasting fix on the web, add your languages under Settings > Playback & Performance > Language.

Google says content with the original audio in one of your preferred languages will not be translated. Google also says audio tracks default to the viewer's preferred language, which is determined by their watch history.

For creators, YouTube Studio turns automatic dubbing on by default for eligible channels. Our auto-dubbing guide says you can turn it off at Settings > Channel > Advanced settings > Allow automatic dubbing.

Why AI Keeps Showing Up Anyway

Several vendors say their AI features are on by default. Microsoft says the Copilot app is enabled automatically after certain Windows updates, unless a group policy blocked it first.

Apple says the next generation of Apple Intelligence "is automatically available on eligible devices when you update to the 27.0 software releases." Google says its smart feature settings are off by default only in the European Economic Area (EEA), Japan, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

Google's admin help says, "The default setting for Gemini features in Workspace services is on." LinkedIn says its generative AI training setting is on unless you turn it off. Our Galaxy AI guide says a major One UI update can add new Galaxy AI features that are on by default.

Pew Research Center surveyed 5,023 adults in the United States from June 9 to 15, 2025. Half of them, 50%, say they are more concerned than excited about the increased use of AI in daily life. That share was 37% in 2021.

About six in ten say they would like more control over how AI is used in their own lives. Only 17% are comfortable with the amount of control they have, and 21% are unsure.

Pew also found that nearly three quarters would let AI help at least a little with day-to-day tasks. Pew's report does not ask about default-on features specifically.

Start with the product that shows AI most often, then open its guide from the table at the top.

Sources

1. Google Search Help: AI Overviews
2. Gmail Help: smart features and controls
3. Gemini Apps Help: manage or delete the Gemini app on Android
4. Google Assistant Help: summarize messages while in your car
5. Google Chrome Help: Gemini in Chrome
6. YouTube Help: preferred languages and audio track
7. YouTube Help: multi-language audio
8. Apple iPhone User Guide: turn off and restrict Apple Intelligence
9. Apple Support: how to get the next generation of Apple Intelligence
10. Microsoft Support: turn off Copilot in Microsoft 365 apps
11. Microsoft Learn: manage Copilot in Windows
12. Microsoft Learn: Policy CSP WindowsAI
13. WhatsApp Help Center: about restricted chat
14. Snapchat Support: how to unpin or remove My AI
15. LinkedIn Help: does LinkedIn use personal data for generative AI
16. LinkedIn Help: Data for Generative AI Improvement setting
17. Pew Research Center: How Americans View AI and Its Impact on People and Society