Firefox 148 Launches with AI Kill Switch Feature and More Enhancements

Source: Hacker News

AI Kill Switch Feature

Firefox 148 introduces an “AI kill switch” that lets users disable AI functionalities such as chatbot prompts and AI‑generated link summaries. Once AI features are turned off, future updates will respect this choice.

How to disable AI features

1. Open Settings > AI Controls.
2. Toggle the Block AI Enhancements option.

This action stops in‑app notifications encouraging AI use and removes any previously downloaded AI models from the device. A selective blocking option is also available for users who want to keep certain AI functions (e.g., on‑device translations) while avoiding cloud‑based services.

Remote Update Controls

Firefox 148 gives users more control over remote updates. You can opt out of automatic updates while still minimizing data collection:

• Go to Settings > Privacy & Settings > Firefox Data Collection and adjust the preferences as desired.

Web Platform Enhancements

• Integration of the Trusted Types API and Sanitizer API to help combat cross‑site scripting (XSS) attacks.
• Service worker support for WebGPU added.

These enhancements strengthen security and expand capabilities for modern web applications.

Additional Improvements

• Improved screen‑reader compatibility for mathematical formulas in PDFs.
• Availability of Firefox Backup on Windows 10.
• New translation support for Vietnamese and Traditional Chinese.
• New tab wallpapers appear in container tabs.

Reference

• Official release notes