LibreOffice Says It Will Not Add AI Features, Citing Privacy and Auditability

October 7 (IT Home) — If you are looking for document editing software that does not use artificial intelligence, LibreOffice may be the choice for you.

The Document Foundation, the non-profit organisation that develops the open-source document editor LibreOffice, said in a blog post this week that it is not simply opposed to artificial intelligence, but that for the foreseeable future it “will not” add AI features to its software.

The blog post came a few weeks after LibreOffice released its latest version in late August. At that time the non-profit had already restated that the software “does not include any generative AI features.”

LibreOffice said at the time that this was “a carefully considered design position,” intended to ensure that users’ documents are not uploaded to a server for processing and that no part of the software’s operation requires an internet connection. The non-profit added that tens of millions of individual users and organisations use the software, and that users should always be in control of their own data.

The organisation said: “Any organisation handling confidential information, legally privileged material or personal data needs to know where that data goes. The only guarantee that can be audited is that the data stays on the local device and does not leak out.”

LibreOffice also notes that users who still want AI tools can install extensions themselves to connect the document editor to a local AI model.

IT Home notes that the software’s decision not to build in AI runs counter to the prevailing trend among many software vendors today. Many vendors now pile on AI features, even at the cost of the user experience. Modern software is showing what commentators call degradation: large numbers of redundant, bloated features, such as chatbots and AI assistants, are being added. As a result, some developers have begun building or adding tools to block or completely remove AI modules from software.

AI tools often need to upload user data to remote servers for processing, and users have no control over how that data is stored or how long it is kept.

LibreOffice says no integration solution currently meets all of its conditions — for example, guaranteeing that user data stays on the local device while also not depending on a single AI provider. The organisation says its standard for adding AI features to the software does not amount to “rejecting AI outright.” The decision is an assessment based on the current state of the technology, not a verdict on the value of the AI industry itself.

LibreOffice wrote in the blog post: “Until then, the default installation of the software will not include any form of AI; users who want AI features can use extensions. At the same time, we will continue to follow closely where this technology actually goes.”