@conscious.app: LibreOffice, the ethical alternative to Microsoft Office, released a version with no AI on purpose and got a record 1 million downloads in its first week. LibreOffice is free software for documents, spreadsheets and presentations, made by The Document Foundation, a German nonprofit. It has no subscriptions, paid upgrades or tracking, doesn't send your documents anywhere, and its code is public for anyone to check. Version 26.8 came out on August 26, 2026, and its announcement said it "contains no generative AI features." A week later, the foundation reported 1,031,162 downloads, the most in the first week of any LibreOffice release. The foundation says it isn't against AI. It will only add AI that's user-controlled, keeps data on the device and doesn't depend on one AI company. Until then, people can use outside add-ons, some running AI on their own computer. Microsoft went the other way in January 2025, adding its AI assistant, Copilot, to Microsoft 365, the subscription version of Office, and raising U.S. prices by $3 a month. The Personal plan went from $70 to $100 a year. Subscribers could avoid AI with a cheaper "Classic" plan, but it took extra steps. Australia's consumer regulator sued Microsoft in 2025, alleging it hid that plan until customers tried to cancel. Microsoft apologized and offered refunds, but the case continues. Support ethical tech. Check the Conscious Spend app to find better alternatives to unethical companies.

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Monday 19 October 2026 15:35:33 GMT