Zed, an open source code editor focusing on speed and open source technology, can now completely disable AI features.
In a blog post published on July 23rd, ZED announced the new global setting “Disable_Ai”: true. This allows users to add it to their config .json file to disable all AI features. This change is available in preview today and will be included in next week's stable release. A single onboarding switch to disable AI will also be rolled out soon for new users.
“If you don't want AI in your workflow, it's not there,” the team noted.
The Zed team cited community feedback, particularly on Github, as the driving force behind the decision. The developers raised concerns about the environmental impact of AI, training data ethics, and organizational policies that limit the use of AI.
“We've heard these concerns from users and agree that these are valid engineering decisions,” the post read.
Zed offers alternatives to support local AI models for increased privacy. An option to use a personal API key with a preferred provider, and a human zero retention policy for requests sent to Zed's own AI services.
Despite its focus on AI, as evidenced by ongoing agent engineering, Zed maintains its commitment to user choice.
Zed positions itself as a faster, rust-based alternative to AI-powered cord forks such as Cursor and Windsurf. Built from the ground up, it appeals to developers looking for performance, simplicity and local-first AI capabilities. Users praise their speed, built-in VIM mode, and agent editing without relying on an internet connection.
Editors are available under GPL licenses and continue to expand the capabilities of both AI and non-AAI workflows. Future priorities include support for Windows and wide compatibility with AI models.
