Keep AI Out of Your Microsoft Office - Modified again 12-11-24

Modification:

Microsoft has moved the storage location of the AI files Office uses to run the AI function.

If you have the bat file created from the command in the original Keep AI Out of Your Microsoft Office article or the modified version, you need to replace those commands with the following commands which deletes the AI files in their new storage locations for both 32 bit and 64 bit installs of Microsoft Office and runs even if the files are not at the Path of the delete command.  If your AI files are stored in a different location, you must change the Path in the command to the Path address for your AI files.

To help to make this modification easier, Paste the following commands into a notepad document starting on the left margin of the first line.

Save the document as a .bat file by selecting All Files in the Save as type box and enter the name as NoAI2.bat

del "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\ProgramFilesCommonX86\Microsoft Shared\OFFICE16\AI" /q

del "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\ProgramFilesCommonX64\Microsoft Shared\OFFICE16\AI" /q

del "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\ProgramFilesCommonX86\Microsoft Shared\OFFICE16\AI" /q

del "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\ProgramFilesCommonX64\Microsoft Shared\OFFICE16\AI" /q

Note: These commands do not delete the AI folder that Microsoft added, but deletes all the AI files in that folder.

These instructions are a method to keep the AI app (ai.exe) Microsoft has added thru updates from loading, running, or using any resources. This Artificial Intelligence app uses a lot of resources to perform its functions. This use of resources on less robust systems causes the Office Apps to slow down and sometimes hang due to lack of resources. Note: Software Restriction Policies of the Group Policies will not prevent AI from launching.

Why I keep AI from running with Office apps?

I have Office 2019 C2R installed on my Windows 10 PC.  I do not have Copilot nor do I plan on getting Copilot.

I have been told that deleting the Office AI files will prevent “advanced” functions in my Office apps.  Often these comments relate to Copilot when presented.

I have tested nearly all the functions in my Office apps with the AI function running and the AI function not running.  I can find no difference at all.  I don’t see any advanced functions with the AI files running.  The only difference I do see is the additional resources the AI function uses.  I strongly believe that the AI function in Office apps is there to inner act with Copilot and without Copilot the AI functions offers no benefits at all.

This additional resource use may not impede the function of a robust system with plenty of resources, but on less robust systems the additional resource use can seriously impede the function of the PC and the performance of the app.  Example: I have a less robust laptop that when the AI function is running there is a 3 – 5 seconds gap between typing the keyboard and that text being entered into the document.  Without AI function running there is no gap at all.

My logic is simple...don’t waste resources on something you do not get any benefit from. 

If you like this type of instructions, then you might like Windows 10 Home Users Companion 2nd. Ed. which is a Free book in a pdf file. It contains over 140 tips, how tos, and troubleshooting topics for Windows 10 Home, Outlook, Word, and Excel. The book is 100% free with no ads or malware. You can download a copy of the book at the link below.

Windows 10 Home Users Companion 2nd. Ed.pdf

Modification - Substitute the commands above in the instructions below to create the NoAI.bat

Keep AI Out of Your Microsoft Office

What

Instructions to create a bat file of commands to delete specific Microsoft Office AI files which will prevent Microsoft Office AI from opening and functioning.  Also included are instructions to create a scheduled task to run this bat file automatically and keep the AI function deactivated.

Why

Microsoft Office thru updates has installed a background running app called Artificial Intelligence (ai.exe) and associated AI files.  The Office AI will launch when an Office application such as Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint is opened.  This AI app will open as a separate process from the Office app.  Open an Office app such as Word, open the Task Manager, and expand the Word process listed to show the AI process loaded.  One explanation for the AI being a separate process is not to put the AI’s CPU and RAM usage with the Office app’s CPU and RAM usage.  The exact function of what the AI app will do or how much CPU and RAM usage it will need has not been revealed.  Currently the AI app loads into your RAM, but all my testing showed that it doesn’t use the CPU or perform any function, resulting in using your RAM with no function performed.  The amount of RAM currently used by the AI app is very small and should not be a problem for all systems except those low end systems with the bare minimum of RAM.  Preventing the AI app from loading will free up that RAM and help with performance of such minimum RAM systems.  Whenever Microsoft turns on the AI function (Microsoft didn’t install it to load and do nothing), the RAM and CPU usage will increase and other users will benefit from preventing the AI app from loading, running, and using their resources.

How

Note:   The instructions are based upon Windows 10 and Microsoft Office 2019 installed on the C:\ drive, but the instructions should apply to any Office 16 (2016 & up).

• o   Verify that ai.exe is in the following folders: For 32 bit installs to the Program Files (x86) folder:
  • %ProgramFiles(x86)%\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\ProgramFilesCommonX86\Microsoft Shared\Office16\AI
  • %ProgramFiles(x86)%\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\ProgramFilesCommonX64\Microsoft Shared\Office16\AI OR For 64 bit installs to the Program Files folder:
  • %ProgramFiles%\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\ProgramFilesCommonX64\Microsoft Shared\Office16\AI
  • %ProgramFiles%\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\ProgramFilesCommonX86\Microsoft Shared\Office16\AI
  • If ai.exe is not in any of the above locations, you must edit the Path in the command for the ai.exe folder on your system.
  • Open Notepad to a new document.
  • Copy the following command all at once: del "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\ProgramFilesCommonX86\Microsoft Shared\OFFICE16\AI" /q del "C:\Program Files\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\ProgramFilesCommonX64\Microsoft Shared\OFFICE16\AI" /q del "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\ProgramFilesCommonX86\Microsoft Shared\OFFICE16\AI" /q del "C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Office\root\vfs\ProgramFilesCommonX64\Microsoft Shared\OFFICE16\AI" /q

    ---

    Each del command will be on a separate line in Notepad
• o   Paste this command in the Notepad document so it starts on the first line of the page on the left margin.   The command will delete the ai.exe and ai.dll files from any of those folders.
  • Select File > Save as to open the Save as window.  Choose a location to save the file.  In Save as file type: select All files.  Enter the name as NoAI.bat (the .bat must be part of the name).
  • Now test the bat file to see it work.  Use File Explorer to go to the NoAI.bat file, right click the file and select Run as administrator which will cause the UAC to open for you to click Yes to allow the command to run.  It will appear as nothing happened, but use the first step above to go to those folders and see that the ai.exe and ai.dll files are gone.  Note: All Office apps (and associated AI apps) must be closed so the commands can delete the ai files.
  • The next Microsoft Office update, which will be silent as all of them are, may reinstall the ai.exe and ai.dll files.  This will require you to run the bat file again (when you notice AI running again) to get rid of these files and keep AI from running.  It is easier to set this running of that bat file to be ran automatically so you don’t have to mess with it again.
  • Creating a scheduled task to run this bat on a daily basis will make sure those files are deleted after any update reinstall and keep AI from running.

Create Scheduled Task to Run NoAI.bat

• Before creating a task to run the NoAI.bat file make sure you have the bat file stored where you plan on keeping it.  I keep a separate folder to store “run” files.  The bat file can’t be moved once the task has been created.
• Open Task Scheduler by opening a Run box (WinKey + R), entering control.exe schedtasks, and pressing the Enter key.
• After Task Scheduler opens press and release the following keys in this order: Alt, A, B.  This will open the Create Basic Task Wizard as shown below.
• Enter a name for the Task.  The name can not have ant spaces in the it.  Entering a Description of the task is optional, but over time we forget and so a brief description may help us in the future.
• Press Next to go to the next page in the wizard as shown below.
• Select Daily if not already selected.
• Press Next to go to the next page in the wizard as shown below.
• Enter a time each day for this Task to run.  I chose 5:00 AM which is just before my regular use of the Office Apps to delete any ai files that may have been added thru an update the night before.  It doesn’t matter when the Task runs as this bat file will run in a few seconds on even the slowest of machines.  May sure 1 is in the Recur every: Days box.
• Press Next to go to the next page in the wizard as shown below.
• Select Start a program if not already selected.
• Press Next to go to the next page in the wizard as shown below.
• Press the Browse... button to open an Explorer window to go to where you keep the bat file and select the bat file as the “program”.  After the selection the Explorer window will close and the Path address to that bat file will display in the box.
• Press Next to go to the next page in the wizard as shown below.
• Click the box next to Open the Properties dialog for this task when I click Finish.
• Select Finish which will open the task’s Properties to the General tab as shown below.
• Click to select Run with highest privileges.  This box must be checked for this bat file to run.  Click the drop down arrow to the right of the Configure for: box and select Windows 10.
• Press the OK button to close the Properties box.
• Close Task Scheduler.
• That is it.  Each day at the time you set the bat file will run in the background.  If no AI files are there to delete, nothing will happen and if ai files are there they will be deleted without you even knowing about it and resulting in keeping AI out of your Office Apps.

<edited by Moderator to update links>