Mozilla frustrates Firefox users with new AI browser feature

Firefox 141.0's AI feature upsets users with CPU spikes.

: Mozilla's latest Firefox release, version 141.0, introduces an AI-based feature for grouping browser tabs, causing unexpected CPU usage spikes. Users on Reddit reported that the 'Inference' process could escalate CPU usage to 130%, leading to both power problems and slow performance. Mozilla acknowledged the abnormal spikes, expressing intent to address them, but users remain frustrated with what they deem unnecessary AI integration in Firefox. This AI rollout reflects a broader industry trend towards AI in browsers, with competitors like Chrome and Edge also adopting similar technologies.

Mozilla has introduced a new AI-driven feature in the latest major release of Firefox, version 141.0, which aims to automatically organize similar browser tabs into groups and suggest names for these groups. This feature, which employs a locally installed AI model, has been reported by users to cause significant performance issues, particularly with unexpected spikes in CPU usage. Reddit users have expressed their frustration over these issues, noting the 'Inference' process sometimes causing CPU usage to increase dramatically, in some cases as high as 130 percent, leading to substantial power inefficiencies and sluggish browser performance.

Mozilla developers have acknowledged the problem, referring to the occurrences as 'abnormal CPU spikes' which should not happen under normal circumstances. The company has issued a bug report on Bugzilla, affirming that they are working to address these spikes. Mozilla explained in a post that the AI-enhanced tab grouping is still experimental and is being rolled out progressively. The inferencing process is designed to run entirely on the user's local machine, ensuring privacy, but occasionally makes mistakes in identifying tab groups or suggesting names.

Users have expressed dissatisfaction with Mozilla's choice to integrate AI in what they consider trivial tasks within Firefox, evidenced by comments on forums pleading with Mozilla to discontinue adding what some call 'AI horse sh*t'. Some users have managed their experience by disabling the AI tab-grouping option through Firefox settings, noting that the rollout of the feature is not uniform as not all instances of Firefox are affected by this new feature yet.

This move by Mozilla to integrate AI is part of a broader trend, as web browsers across the industry are increasingly incorporating AI technology. Chrome and Microsoft's Edge, for example, have included AI features in their platforms, such as Chrome's data comparison between tabs and Edge's Copilot Mode. Additionally, companies like OpenAI and Perplexity are developing AI browsers based on the Chromium engine as alternatives to established names.

Despite user dissatisfaction, Mozilla continues to push towards making Firefox an 'AI-first, privacy-friendly' browser, trying to maintain user trust by keeping the AI processes confined to local machines. The contrasting reactions from the user base indicate a significant difference between corporate goals of incorporating AI and user expectations for the functionality and reliability of their web browsers.

Sources: TechSpot, Mozilla Support, Reddit

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