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Yes—but “no AI” means LibreOffice has no AI features in its default installation, not that the suite blocks AI altogether. The Document Foundation set out that policy on September 3, 2026, and reiterated the shorthand in an October 1 recap: users can still add third-party AI extensions, while the project will consider built-in features only if they meet its requirements for user control, privacy, and document handling.
What LibreOffice means by “no AI”
The policy applies to LibreOffice’s default installation. The Foundation says the LibreOffice 26.8 release has no built-in generative AI features; users who want AI can choose to install an extension. The distinction matters: “no AI” describes what comes with the suite by default, not a technical ban on AI integrations.
In its September 3, 2026 statement, The Document Foundation said it does not reject AI outright. Instead, it will not put an AI feature in the default configuration until the feature can meet the project’s requirements. The Foundation’s stated position is that no current integration meets all of them for default deployment and support throughout a release lifecycle. Read the Foundation’s policy statement.
Why the Foundation is holding AI out of the default installation
The Foundation’s criteria focus on who controls the feature, where it processes information, and whether it fits LibreOffice’s document and deployment needs. Its requirements are:
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- User control over inference: users must be able to control where AI processing takes place.
- Authorization before data leaves the computer: document content must not be transmitted without the user’s authorization.
- No telemetry: the integration must not collect telemetry.
- Provider independence: the feature must not depend on a single provider.
- ODF fidelity: generated content must preserve the structure, styles, and semantics of OpenDocument Format files.
- Optional deployment: the feature must be entirely optional, including the ability for administrators to omit it.
These are the Foundation’s stated requirements for a default integration, not a claim that every third-party AI extension meets them. The project says an integration would also need to be supportable throughout the full lifecycle of a release.
Can you use AI with LibreOffice?
Yes. Third-party extensions are available, including extensions that connect to local models through tools such as Ollama or LM Studio, or to another OpenAI-compatible endpoint. The extensions are maintained by their authors, not by The Document Foundation, and can differ in maturity and configuration.
“Local model” does not automatically mean every part of an extension’s workflow stays on your device. A local endpoint and a cloud endpoint have different data paths; check the extension’s configured endpoint and the recipient’s data practices before using it with sensitive documents. The Foundation specifically advises users to establish whether a cloud endpoint is configured and what the provider does with received data.
What this policy does—and does not—say
- It does say that AI is absent from LibreOffice’s default installation under the stated policy, and that the project will evaluate integrations against its conditions.
- It does not say that LibreOffice will never include AI. The Foundation describes its stance as conditional, rather than a permanent rejection.
- It does not say that all AI extensions are private, mature, or supported by the Foundation. Extensions are third-party components, and their data handling depends on their implementation and endpoint.
- It does not establish how competing office suites perform against the same criteria. The Foundation’s list can serve as a comparison checklist, but it is not an independent comparison of other products.
What prompted the “no AI is a feature” line?
The phrase came from a comment on the LibreOffice 26.8 announcement: “So, no AI is now a feature?” The Foundation later used “No AI is now a feature” as a concise framing in its October 1, 2026 community recap, which also clarified that users are not prevented from using extensions and that AI is neither forced nor built in. Read the October recap.
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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesThat recap reported one million downloads of LibreOffice 26.8 in its first week, a Foundation-reported download figure rather than an independently audited usage count. It also grouped more than 50,000 social-media views, shares, and likes during that week; that combined figure is not a count of unique people or users. The Foundation separately reported more than 20,000 views of the release’s new-features video.
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