AI tools are being added to phones, search engines, email apps, writing tools, and workplace software so quickly that some users are now looking for help turning them off. That demand is showing up in an unexpected place: public libraries.
Library workshops focused on “Avoiding AI” are drawing strong interest from people who feel that AI features are being pushed into everyday products without enough choice. The trend is not simply anti-technology. It is more specific than that. Many attendees want to understand what AI is doing, where it appears on their devices, and how to decide whether to use it.
Why Libraries Are Hosting AI Avoidance Classes
Public libraries have long helped people with basic digital literacy: setting up email, using search, filling out online forms, protecting accounts, and understanding new devices. AI is now becoming part of that same support role.
In Philadelphia, librarian Charlie Bailey has been teaching attendees how to disable features such as Apple Intelligence and Gemini on common devices and platforms. The workshop starts with a plain-language explanation of how consumer AI tools work, then moves into practical settings and opt-out steps.
Bailey framed the work as helping people reclaim control over whether they use AI tools. That distinction matters. The issue is not only whether AI can be useful. It is whether users are being given a clear choice.
The Demand Is Larger Than Expected
The idea spread from librarian Hannah Cyrus in Maine, who wrote about creating her own AI avoidance workshop. Other librarians then contacted her for guidance after seeing the same kinds of questions from patrons.
At Bangor Public Library, interest reportedly exceeded the usual turnout for technology classes. Cyrus’ first sessions had enough demand to require a registration cap, a waitlist, and a Zoom option.
Philadelphia saw a similar reaction. A social post for Bailey’s workshop received far more attention than the library’s typical updates, and demand was high enough that another session was scheduled.
That response shows something useful about the current AI rollout. The average user may not be following model benchmarks, enterprise contracts, or AI startup funding. But they are noticing when tools begin rewriting emails, summarizing content, changing search results, or appearing inside apps they already use.
This Is About Control, Not Rejecting Technology
The phrase “Avoiding AI” can sound like a blanket rejection, but the workshop examples point to a more practical concern. People are not necessarily rejecting every AI use case. Some attendees recognize that AI can help in medicine, accessibility, document scanning, or other specialized areas.
What they object to is forced adoption. If a feature appears by default, uses unclear data practices, or changes the experience of a device without clear consent, users are more likely to push back.
Tech Block Central recently covered how AI companion apps are raising questions about human support and user boundaries. Library AI avoidance workshops show a similar theme from another angle: people want the benefits of technology without losing agency.
Why Big Tech Should Pay Attention
AI companies and platform owners are racing to make AI feel normal. The risk is that they move faster than user trust. When people have to attend a class to understand how to turn off an AI feature, that suggests the product design may already be too aggressive.
There are practical reasons someone might want to avoid AI features:
- They do not want private messages summarized or rewritten.
- They distrust how AI tools use personal data.
- They prefer traditional search results without AI answers.
- They worry about environmental costs tied to AI infrastructure.
- They do not want AI suggestions changing how they write, read, or work.
- They find the features distracting or unnecessary.
Those concerns are not fringe. They are ordinary user-experience and trust issues. A feature can be powerful and still be unwelcome if people feel it was forced onto them.
AI Opt-Outs Need To Be Clearer
The popularity of these workshops suggests that AI settings are too scattered. Users should not need a guided class to find basic controls for AI summaries, writing suggestions, search changes, or device assistants.
Better AI settings would be simple, visible, and reversible. Platforms should explain what each feature does, whether it uses personal data, whether content leaves the device, and how to disable it. The best opt-out should not require hidden menus or platform-specific tricks.
This is also a digital literacy issue. AI is becoming part of everyday software, so users need plain-language education about how it works and what choices they have. Libraries are stepping into that gap because many companies are not explaining it clearly enough.
The Bigger Signal
The rise of “Avoiding AI” workshops does not mean AI adoption is failing. It means AI adoption is uneven. Some users want AI everywhere. Others want it only in specific cases. Some do not want it at all.
That range of preferences should shape product design. If AI is going to become a standard part of phones, browsers, email, and workplace tools, the controls need to be as mature as the features themselves.
For now, libraries are providing the practical help many users need: what is AI doing on my device, and how do I turn it off if I do not want it? That question may become one of the most important consumer-tech issues of the next phase of AI.
Would you use an “Avoiding AI” workshop, or do you think AI controls should already be obvious inside every app?
Further reading: Information Technology and Libraries article and Free Library event post.