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TechQuiet 2d · day 3

macOS 27 users report difficulty fully disabling Siri and Apple Intelligence

A user discovers Siri processes continue running even after disabling the feature through multiple settings.

newest coverage 2d agosummary written 2d ago13 pieces151 likes & upvotes83 comments Hacker NewsNewswires

What to know

  • A user reports that Siri continues running as a background process even after disabling it through multiple macOS 27 settings pathways and system debloat scripts.
  • Several workarounds exist—switching to 'Siri Classic' mode, using language mismatch detection, or deploying enterprise management profiles—but no straightforward way to fully remove Apple Intelligence.
  • Beyond privacy concerns, the local AI installation occupies roughly 10% of storage on base Mac models, which have limited capacity.

The dispute Whether the observed Siri process is actually Apple Intelligence or a renamed system component (Spotlight rebrand) remains unclear from the discussion. · positions read across 11 posts and comments

most voices

Disabling features appears insufficient; AI processes continue running despite multiple disable attempts.

  • “I disabled Siri in the Settings app, and then further disabled Siri and its extensions in Settings > Screen Time... But after restarting, I could still see a "Siri" process running in Activity Monitor.”

    semidror · Hacker News ↗
many voices

Workarounds exist but require technical knowledge or non-standard configurations.

  • “In Screen Time -> Content and Privacy, there's a setting to switch Siri to 'Siri Classic' which strips out the Apple Intelligence-backed behavior specifically.”

    Nata_Elisym · Hacker News ↗
some voices

Storage consumption and bloat are as significant as privacy concerns for users with limited drive space.

  • “the problem is not only the privacy implications but also that the local AI comes with a baggage amounting to 10% of the space on the base mac models. Which is already severely limited.”

    nottorp · Hacker News ↗

semidror macOS 27 user

How it unfolded 6 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump articlespostscomments

Peak 3 pieces in one hour at Sep 21, 8 AM; 13 pieces over 3 days (1 article · 1 post · 11 comments) Sep 21, 7 AM — 2 pieces · 1 article · 1 post — Hacker News 1, Newswires 1Sep 21, 8 AM — 3 pieces · 3 comments — Hacker News 3Sep 21, 9 AM — 2 pieces · 2 comments — Hacker News 2Sep 21, 10 AM — 2 pieces · 2 comments — Hacker News 2Sep 21, 11 AM — quietSep 21, 12 PM — 3 pieces · 3 comments — Hacker News 3Sep 21, 1 PM — quietSep 21, 2 PM — quietSep 21, 3 PM — quietSep 21, 4 PM — quietSep 21, 5 PM — quietSep 21, 6 PM — quietSep 21, 7 PM — quietSep 21, 8 PM — quietSep 21, 9 PM — quietSep 21, 10 PM — quietSep 21, 11 PM — quietSep 22, 12 AM — quietSep 22, 1 AM — quietSep 22, 2 AM — quietSep 22, 3 AM — 1 piece · 1 comment — Hacker News 1Sep 22, 4 AM — quietSep 22, 5 AM — quietSep 22, 6 AM — quietSep 22, 7 AM — quietSep 22, 8 AM — quietSep 22, 9 AM — quietSep 22, 10 AM — quietSep 22, 11 AM — quietSep 22, 12 PM — quietSep 22, 1 PM — quietSep 22, 2 PM — quietSep 22, 3 PM — quietSep 22, 4 PM — quietSep 22, 5 PM — quietSep 22, 6 PM — quietSep 22, 7 PM — quietSep 22, 8 PM — quietSep 22, 9 PM — quietSep 22, 10 PM — quietSep 22, 11 PM — quietYesterday, 12 AM — quietYesterday, 1 AM — quietYesterday, 2 AM — quietYesterday, 3 AM — quietYesterday, 4 AM — quietYesterday, 5 AM — quietYesterday, 6 AM — quietYesterday, 7 AM — quietYesterday, 8 AM — quietYesterday, 9 AM — quietYesterday, 10 AM — quietYesterday, 11 AM — quietYesterday, 12 PM — quietYesterday, 1 PM — quietYesterday, 2 PM — quietYesterday, 3 PM — quietYesterday, 4 PM — quietYesterday, 5 PM — quietYesterday, 6 PM — quietYesterday, 7 PM — quietYesterday, 8 PM — quietYesterday, 9 PM — quietYesterday, 10 PM — quietYesterday, 11 PM — quietToday, 12 AM — quietToday, 1 AM — quietToday, 2 AM — quietToday, 3 AM — quietToday, 4 AM — quietToday, 5 AM — quietToday, 6 AM — quietToday, 7 AM — quietToday, 8 AM — quietToday, 9 AM — quietToday, 10 AM — quiet 1–56
Sep 22yesterdaynow · 11:54 AM ET
  1. 6

    Commenter points to potential Apple Support solution

    A user references a Reddit thread where someone claimed Apple Support provided terminal commands to remove Apple Intelligence.

    • You should make use of Cunningham's Law[1]. Instead of posting an "Ask HN" asking if it's impossible to disable, post a "Show HN" claiming that it is impossible to disable.Then people will flock to tell you how it can be disabled by XYZ.[1]

      jodrellblankHacker News2d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    2 more of the top 3 · 4 posts in this stretch

    • This is a reddit thread where OP claims to have gotten instructions from Apple Support to remove Apple Intelligence.

      ShuddownHacker News2d agoview on Hacker News ↗

    • Personally, I think Apple should have gotten rid of Siri a long time ago. It's a pretty useless assistant. They'd be better off integrating Gemini or ChatGPT instead.

      MotoriXHacker News2d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    all of them →
  2. 5

    MDM-based workaround suggested by enterprise IT administrator

    A commenter working in IT reports that enterprise management profiles can block AI features, though notes the method requires MDM software or manual profile configuration.

    “One workaround that I know would work would be an enterprise profile. I know this because I'm one of the people tasked with blocking AI stuff at my org.”
    — alsetmusic

    • One workaround that I know would work would be an enterprise profile. I know this because I’m one of the people tasked with blocking AI stuff at my org. How you’d implement this without a subscription to management (MDM) software I leave to you to research. I know it’s possible without proprietary tools because I’ve read about people using…

      alsetmusicHacker News3d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    1 more of the top 2 · 2 posts in this stretch

    • The final release of 27 still has so many bugs.It's depressing to see certain bugs persist in each new beta. You know they'll be in release.I gave up reporting anything years ago.

      RazenganHacker News3d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    all of them →
  3. 4

    User reports language mismatch workaround for Apple Intelligence

    A commenter describes a workaround where setting the Mac language different from Siri's language triggers an error that blocks Apple Intelligence, noting this was reintroduced in macOS 27.0.

    “There's the old trick of setting your computer language to be different from the Siri language. I get the following error message when I open Siri in Settings: Apple Intelligence requires that Mac and Siri are set to the same language.”
    — kccqzy

    • There’s the old trick of setting your computer language to be different from the Siri language. I get the following error message when I open Siri in Settings:> Apple Intelligence requires that Mac and Siri are set to the same language. Currently your Mac is set to English (United States) and Siri is set to English (Canada).I think at one point…

      kccqzyHacker News3d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    1 more of the top 2 · 2 posts in this stretch

    • The process that shows the Spotlight UI is now the one called "Siri", previously it was called "Spotlight".

      galad87Hacker News3d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    all of them →
  4. 3

    User notes storage consumption as additional concern

    A commenter identifies that beyond privacy issues, the local AI installation takes up approximately 10% of storage on base Mac models, which are already space-limited.

    “the problem is not only the privacy implications but also that the local AI comes with a baggage amounting to 10% of the space on the base mac models. Which is already severely limited.”
    — nottorp

    • I've been daily-driving a mac for 10 years now and I've only ever triggered Siri by accident. I do use it pretty regularly on the phone, mostly to set timers, get directions, and call contacts, but I've been well trained over these years to not expect it to be capable of more than that.

      chuckadamsHacker News3d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    1 more of the top 2 · 2 posts in this stretch

    • Just as a note, from what I see the problem is not only the privacy implications but also that the local AI comes with a baggage amounting to 10% of the space on the base mac models. Which is already severely limited.

      nottorpHacker News3d agoview on Hacker News ↗
    all of them →
  5. 2

    User identifies workaround via Screen Time settings

    A commenter points to a Screen Time setting that switches Siri to 'Siri Classic', which removes Apple Intelligence-backed behavior.

    “In Screen Time -> Content and Privacy, there's a setting to switch Siri to 'Siri Classic' which strips out the Apple Intelligence-backed behavior specifically.”
    — Nata_Elisym

    • In Screen Time -> Content and Privacy, there's a setting to switch Siri to 'Siri Classic' which strips out the Apple Intelligence-backed behavior specifically.

      Nata_ElisymHacker News3d agoview on Hacker News ↗
  6. 1

    User reports Siri still running after disabling through multiple settings

    A macOS 27 user disabled Siri in Settings, Screen Time, and through system debloat scripts, but found a "Siri AI.app" process still running in Activity Monitor after restart.

    “I disabled Siri in the Settings app, and then further disabled Siri and its extensions in Settings > Screen Time. Next, I disabled all Siri-related and Apple Intelligence-related services as per https://github.com/OleksandrKrupko/mac-os-debloat But after restarting, I could still see a "Siri" process running in Activity Monitor.”
    — semidror
    1. 1 outlet Ask HN: Is it impossible to disable Siri on macOS 27?

      first by HN Frontpage, 3d ago

What people are saying 1 voices from 1 site · best of 11 · verbatim