Share your feedback on the AI services experiment in Nightly

[asafko]

Hi folks, 

In the next few days, we will start the Nightly experiment which provides easy access to AI services from the sidebar. This functionality is entirely optional, and it’s there to see if it’s a helpful addition to Firefox. It is not built into any core functionality and needs to be turned on by you to see it. 

If you want to try the experiment, activate it via Nightly Settings > Firefox Labs (please see full instructions here). 

We’d love to hear your feedback once you try out the feature, and we’re open to all your ideas and thoughts, whether it’s small tweaks to the current experience or big, creative suggestions that could boost your productivity and make accessing your favorite tools and services in Firefox even easier.

Thanks so much for helping us improve Firefox!

[Taprooted]

Absolutely not. I moved to Firefox because it's not like the other mainstream browsers. We don't need this.

[StarMoss]

I've been a longtime user of Firefox, and I am incredibly disappointed  to see Mozilla adding AI to its browser. My loyalty to Firefox was born from the privacy features and what seemed to me a sensible reluctance to follow along with all the ill-conceived new features tech companies are spitting out these days.

Due to the incredible, negative environmental impact AI has, the ethically questionable datasets most AI are trained on, and the fact that genAI just straight up sucks from a quality standpoint of its output, I am very against Mozilla making this a permanent feature of Firefox.

[AndyDroid10X]

I really don't get all of that people. I guess people who are good with AI like me just use AI features happily, while others could just don't turn those features on, but instead they're commenting around that Firefox is not about AI, AI is bad, they collect their data etc. While I understand the concerns about privacy, I feel OK with that features as long as they're not turned on by default or work as a part of core features like in windows.

I love Orbit and I love that side panel, it's just useful.

[tuxayo]

NO. The actual software running is not libre.
Even if the training algorithm would be libre. The training data isn't.
Even if the training data would be libre. It's impossible to train with reasonable hardware for most collectives of people. We basically invented a programming paradigm that is impossible to compile for almost anyone.
And most AI usage is impossible to host with reasonable resources.

What happened to Principle 7 of The Mozilla Manifesto? https://www.mozilla.org/en-US/about/manifesto/

Most AI usage can't have the concrete benefits of libre software: massively lowering the dependence on a vendor. Whether it's about disagreement on choices or availability on the long term.

Also Principle 6. As of now, most AI usage can only end of in more centralization.

There can be compromises on these principles if having a very very strong reason. Like for translations, automated subtitles, text to speech, because it's accessibility and there are immense benefits there.

[MikeCerm]

There are lots of free/libre LLMs and implementations like ollama. AI is going to happen, whether you want it or not, and if companies like Mozilla don't push for free and open-source options, then the only implementations that matter will be the proprietary ones.

As for the training data, I think there needs to be a reckoning. I'm kind of a fair-use absolutist, so I don't really where the data comes from, and I want it to come from everywhere. I believe that public libraries infringe on copyright, and are a public good because everyone deserves to have access to information. I don't believe that a writer like Stephen King is harmed if people read all of his stories and then attempt to write their own original stories based on the love of what they have read. I also don't see the difference in allowing a person to build a machine capable of reading those stories and attempting to generate new stories by incorporating new and original ideas, i.e., "prompts."

It used to require a skilled artisan to make clothing. Then looms were invented, along with other machines that make clothing so cheap that almost anyone can afford to have it. I think that's a good thing. I mean, it's not great that there is industrial waste that occurs in the process and fast fashion is not great, but I don't think we should return to a time when most people couldn't afford clothing.

AI is going to automate things that previously had to be done by hand, with massive time investments. That is all. It's still going to require skilled people to use it to create things of value. But the tools should be available to everyone, and Mozilla should help make them available as part of their mission for a free and open web.

[onionella]

In most countries public libraries pay royalties for authors per every loan. I do not understand how that could be copyright infringement...

You can be a fair-use absolutist if you want but that does not change the fact that the training data used in those "free/libre LLMs" you linked unconsensually contains copyrighted content and that by definition makes it not free and libre and open source.

[MikeCerm]

I don't know how it works in most countries, but in America you can lend a physical book for free. Ebooks are bound by different terms, but physical books have no such licensing terms, the "first-sale doctrine" exists, so there are no restrictions on what a person might do with a physical book, other than make unauthorized copies, and there are even fair-use exceptions to that, e.g., criticism, news reporting, teaching, education, scholarly research, etc.

With fair use, there are several factors that considered. In the case of these free and/or libre LLMs, their transformational nature, inherently non-commercial, and have their own academic value that outweighs the copyright concerns. The same may not be true of commercial LLMs. 

I also don't think that lot of "terms of services" licenses apply the way that copyright holders think they should. I've visited a lot of websites in my life, and with few exceptions (pay-walled websites), I've never agreed to any terms of service. Do websites publish their terms of service somewhere and claim "all rights reserved"? Maybe, but if you can get to the content without reading or agreeing those terms, then I don't see how they matter. When you broadcast your thoughts out in to the world, they're out there, and they're going to be consumed and used in ways that you cannot control.

[d-k]

Please don't. I think it's a fad - not helpful at best, counterproductive at worst, and I think it's a waste of resources to implement it in general.

[_n0stalg1c1]

As we learned (or did we??) from the nuclear bomb building, "Just because we can, doesn't mean we should."

As our mothers always said, “If all of your friends jumped off a bridge, would you do it too?”.  She said this hoping we could think critically for ourselves, to weigh the dangers and be cautious and not jump head-strong just to not miss out.

[johnnyasantoss]

Can we have an option to add a local website for local LLM inference like webui+ollama?

[Tiaxy]

Could you not, please? It literally isn't needed or helpfull in the slightest for majority of users and is just a waste of space and something that mentioned majority didn't ask for to be forced onto them, including me, which with so many companies doing the exact same thing, is just tiring and disapointing to see from you aswell.

It's just counterproductive and waste of rescources.

[jjmon]

This feature is great as long as it's possible to use a local model for privacy reasons.

It would be great if you can provide a guide on how to setup AI chatbot using a local model thru Ollama or LM Studio. I tried to use Ollama and the only thing it shows is "Ollama is running" in the chatbot panel.

Looking forward more features that work on local models.

[hazing3991]

It would be nice to have DuckDuckGo AI (duck.ai) included. It provides anonymous access to the models and does not take logs itself.

[Zoutpeper]

This literally goes against every reason I have to use Firefox.
Almost every single "AI" on the market is a nightmare of false information and hallucinations. Neither of which I need to BROWSE the web. Firefox is a webBROWSER. If you want to waste money on dumb **bleep**: make a side-project. And it will be a waste of money, all any of the current models have succeeded in is; increasing the amount of spammy websites, proliferating false information and making most search engines about 85% worse (whilst also regurgitating more misinformation).

[wldhg]

If you want to add AI, please make it an extension instead. Do not add it as a built-in feature.

[Mun]

Please stop. AI is a parasite in the modern internet and all you'll be doing to yourselves is make your users hate you. We have ublock, we will block any and all AI buttons you throw our way with it.

Just stop.

[0x4261756D]

I really dislike this "feature", it is another instance of Mozilla misevaluating what their target audience and unique selling point is. Most users use Firefox because it *does not* do tracking stuff, values their privacy and is a counterweight against Google. I hope the flood of negativity in this thread as well as in other similar ones is a wake-up call to focus on what makes Firefox attractive instead of following bad trends in an attempt to fish back users that left for those trends.

[epracigam]

The reason why I use firefox in the first place is to avoid ai, and I am sure many others are doing the same. I am frankly tired of seeing it being incorporated in every service that does not need it in the first place. This will probably turn away a lot of potential new users too, it's not really a good move if you want to make Firefox stand out from other web browsers.

[freydaru]

The addition of AI, particularly ones that cannot properly or ethically source where their data training has come from, will actively deter me from using Mozilla products or supporting the team in future, including my current subscription to the Mozilla VPN. I will move to alternatives. Incredibly disappointing.

[darthwonka]

Can you add configuration options for local AI instances like Ollama and others?

[dareksmarek]

DO. NOT. DO THIS. I don't want to sound rude or agressive, but I don't believe you don't know that ai is highly harmful to the environment, and that people who develop it steal all the sources. Can't you at least do not contribute to ruining everyone's right to use the internet safely, the fact that this function was added just shows that firefox's slogans about privacy are worth putting them among trash. Nobody needs any ai functions, it doesn't have anything new, it's quality is horrifying, and the harm done by it is gigantic. Please stop doing this.

[SabreWulf1986]

These idiotic companies are now buying entire nuclear power plants for this crap. Literally putting more investment into AI than supplying electricity to humans.

[shainaed]

If any AI features become non-optional, I will stop using Firefox and switch to another browser. If they become opt-out rather than opt-in, I will definitely opt-out and will likely switch to another browser. I have less than zero interest in using AI and if I have an option to support companies that aren't buying in to such a destructive fad, I will.

[cumulus]

So I "added" ChatGPT and it showed up as a column on the left. I didn't want to try it right away, so I clicked the 'X' to hide it. Soooo. How do I show it again? I saw a note that says "click on the icon," hmmmm, what icon? I have advertising blockers. If they are the problem I guess I'll turn off ChatGPT.

[guruba]

If you can add Perplexity to the options, thanks.

[jalamity]

I don't want any AI crap, knock it off.

[zwienzixes]

real you hate your users hours

[thwra]

No.

[thwra]

Please no. I'm begging. Don't do this. Your main audience literally consists mostly of internet refugees that are trying to find what little control and privacy they have left online. If we wanted ai we would be using chrome. Doing this would mean losing the reason people use firefox in the first place, it would mean losing the respect you've built up in this community.  You'll lose your audience. 

[zephiiyr]

don't have anything new to say but I'll comment to add to the numbers. No one wants this, it's morally wrong, it's a waste of development time that could be used on better features, it's a trashy gimmick of a feature, & I will quit using firefox if it's added & tell everyone else I know to stop using firefox as well. please don't do this. This was the only browser I trusted.

[YoinkedYoink]

Why make a massive icon appear any time you highlight text. This should be purely kept in the right click menu.

Also, there is no option to just open the sidebar. You have to click on one of the options which submit text even if you highlight nothing e.g.  I’m on page “Share your feedback on the AI services experiment ... - Mozilla Connect” with “” selected.

The whole feature just seems awfully rushed to even be included in an optional "firefox labs" section.

[shocoooo]

add X ^^

[hippilessrich]

if i want a browser with A.i. garbage i will go use a garbage browser !  i choose to use the best browser there is ...? well i used to use the best browser  ( which used to be firefox ) but it is no longer the best browser it is a pile of crap just like all the other ones !!! LOOK IF YOU WANT TO MAKE A GARBAGE BROWSER WITH a.i THEN MAKE A COMPLETELY NEW BROWSWER DO NOT CALL IT FIRFOX 2 GIVE IT A TOTALLY NEW NAME AND PUT ALL THE CRAP YOU WANT IN IT a.i AND YOU NEW TAB SEARCH GARBAGE IN IT AND LEAVE FIREFOX ALONE SO IT CAN STILL BE THE BEST BROWSER THERE IS !!!!

[hippilessrich]

LOOK IF YOU WANT TO MAKE A GARBAGE BROWSER WITH a.i AND YOU NEW TAB SEARCH GARBAGE IN IT  ...THEN MAKE A COMPLETELY NEW BROWSWER DO NOT CALL IT FIRFOX 2 GIVE IT A TOTALLY NEW NAME AND LEAVE FIREFOX ALONE SO IT CAN STILL BE THE BEST BROWSER THERE IS !!!!

[huskap]

No thanks. AI is an unnecessary addition to your search engine; it's a massive resource drain and also isn't a very accurate tool to begin with. Firefox's growing love for AI has me unsettled and significantly less willing to recommend it to others as a search engine.

[El_Gato]

ABSOLUTELY NOT INTERESTED

[umarmalik]

Exciting news about the Nightly experiment! The addition of AI services in the sidebar sounds like a great way to enhance productivity in Firefox. I appreciate that it's optional and can be activated through Nightly Settings. I'm looking forward to testing it out and providing feedback. It’s always great to see Firefox exploring new features—can’t wait to see how this evolves!

[lackey]

I ran several of your posts through an AI detector and they came up positive - including this one. 

I don't mean to gatekeep Firefox fans, but since you are so excited about this feature in particular, wouldn't you have known it was already available in Release Firefox?

[Nobody_of_note]

That one 100% read as AI generated to me, glad to hear the confirmation.

[Werewolfin]

please god no more

in all seriousness i do not want yet another AI service i have to opt out of when frankly opting in should be the default. if someone wants AI to infect anything they use, they can install it like any other extension or however that garbage works, but pushing it onto every single user is messed up.