Help Net Security, MacRumors and AppleInsider reported on 5 October 2026 on RemoveMacAI, a free open-source command-line tool that disables Apple Intelligence on macOS 27 and removes roughly 12 GB of downloaded AI models [1] [2] [3]. The tool matters to Mac users who want the on-device AI features off, either for storage or because they prefer to keep a model out of their daily workflow.
Background
On macOS 27, the system fetches on-device models for Apple Intelligence features such as Siri, Writing Tools and message summaries. These models occupy several gigabytes of disk space, and macOS fetches them again if they are deleted by hand. A configuration profile is the mechanism macOS uses to apply managed restrictions, and it is a different route from editing protected system files.
What the reports describe
According to Help Net Security, the tool runs from a single command, either a curl installer or Homebrew. It lists the active features, asks for confirmation, and opens System Settings so that the user can approve a configuration profile [1]. The profile applies Apple’s restriction keys and redirects model downloads to a closed local port, so the fetches fail and the models are not downloaded again [1]. MacRumors quotes the developer as saying the approach works “without disabling System Integrity Protection (SIP) or manually deleting files from protected system locations” [2].
The features switched off include Siri, Writing Tools, Genmoji, Image Playground, the ChatGPT extension, summaries in Mail, Messages, Safari, Notes and notifications, Mail smart replies, inline predictions, Photos Clean Up, Spatial Photos and Xcode code completion [1]. The tool supports Apple silicon Macs running macOS 27, and the project page states that it was tested on 27.0 and 27.0.1 [1] [4]. It is licensed under the MIT licence [1] [4].
The project page says the tool makes no network requests and collects no data, and that a dry-run mode previews changes before they are applied [1] [4]. The changes can be reversed with a revert command, after which macOS may download the models again [4]. AppleInsider identifies the developer as Om Lahore and advises users to read what the tool does before running it [3].
Implications for Mac users
The tool gives a person who does not use Apple Intelligence a way to recover disk space and to keep the features switched off after updates; MacRumors reports that the configuration persists across system updates [2]. The developer cautions that some restriction keys the tool relies on were deprecated by Apple in macOS 26.4, so a later macOS release could change how it behaves [2].
The sources list side effects. Dictation continues to work, a process named Siri still appears in the process list because it runs Spotlight in macOS 27, and apps that use Apple’s Foundation Models framework lose access to the on-device model [1] [4]. The tool runs a script piped from the internet in its quick install route, which is a pattern that deserves the same scrutiny as any other installer.
Recommendations
- Read the project’s source on GitHub before running an installer piped from curl, or choose the Homebrew route and inspect the formula first.
- Use the dry-run mode to preview which features and how much storage are affected.
- Check whether any app you use depends on the Foundation Models framework before removing the models.
- Review the configuration profile in System Settings after installation, and keep the revert command at hand.
- Switch features off in System Settings first if you only want to disable one or two of them.
Relevance to FireAI
FireAI is a firewall for one Mac. Its optional on-device AI model is downloaded once, only if the user chooses to add it, and runs on the Mac’s own GPU; its summaries are restricted to facts FireAI has already gathered. FireAI also lists which apps go online and lets the user write per-app rules for them.
FireAI does not remove, disable or manage Apple Intelligence, and it does not install configuration profiles. It does not read what Apple’s models process. It is not a storage cleaner, and it has no view of whether a macOS feature is switched on.
Limitations
The sources differ in detail. MacRumors says some users report freeing more than 12 GB, and the other sources give the figure as approximately 12 GB [1] [2] [3]. Apple has not commented in the reports reviewed. This item did not run the tool and has not verified its behaviour; all statements come from the cited pages. The Ars Technica and The Verge coverage of the same tool could not be fetched and is not used.
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