Zoom has integrated artificial intelligence capabilities throughout its platform through the AI Companion feature, which provides automated meeting summaries, intelligent questioning features, smart recording analysis, and various productivity enhancements across Zoom Workplace applications. However, many users and organizations seek to disable these AI-driven features due to privacy concerns, compliance requirements, preference for manual control, or simply to avoid distraction and information overload during meetings and conversations. This comprehensive report examines the multifaceted approaches to disabling Zoom AI Companion, the specific features that can be controlled, the technical requirements and permissions needed, common obstacles users encounter, and the evolving landscape of AI management in Zoom as of January 2026. Understanding how to effectively disable AI Companion requires knowledge of the hierarchical permission structure within Zoom accounts, awareness of where settings are located across the web portal and desktop applications, and familiarity with potential configuration issues that may prevent users from exercising control over these features.
Understanding the Scope and Evolution of Zoom AI Companion
Zoom AI Companion has evolved significantly since its introduction, with the platform now offering what the company calls “AI Companion 3.0,” representing a substantial expansion of AI-driven capabilities throughout the Zoom ecosystem. The feature set encompasses not merely meeting-related functions but extends into team communication, email composition, document creation, webinar management, contact center operations, and specialized workflows for different user roles. Specifically, the AI Companion can generate automatic meeting summaries after discussions conclude, allow participants to ask contextual questions about meeting content in real time, create smart chapters from recorded meetings for easier review, provide call summaries for phone conversations, draft and compose messages in Team Chat with suggested language, generate background images and content across multiple Zoom products, and create daily reflection reports that consolidate meetings and tasks. The breadth of these capabilities means that disabling AI Companion is not a monolithic action but rather requires understanding which specific features exist and at which organizational levels they can be controlled.
The introduction of AI Companion 3.0 in December 2025 represented a turning point in Zoom’s strategy, as the company began offering AI Companion capabilities not only as part of paid Zoom Workplace plans but also as a standalone purchase option for Zoom Basic users at ten dollars monthly. This democratization of access also expanded the need for users and administrators to understand how to manage or disable these features, as more users now have exposure to AI capabilities regardless of their account tier. The report also notes that Zoom has committed to responsible AI practices, publicly stating that “Zoom does not use any customer audio, video, chat, screen sharing, attachments or other communications-like customer content (such as poll results, whiteboard and reactions) to train Zoom’s or third-party artificial intelligence models,” a significant privacy assurance for organizations concerned about data usage.
Account Types, Prerequisites, and Access Requirements
Not all Zoom accounts have equal access to AI Companion features, and understanding the eligibility requirements is essential before attempting to enable or disable these capabilities. Zoom AI Companion is generally available only with paid Zoom Workplace plans, not with the free Zoom Basic tier, though Zoom Basic users can now try limited capabilities or purchase AI Companion as a standalone add-on. The specific paid account types that support comprehensive AI Companion management include Zoom Workplace Pro, Zoom Workplace Pro Plus, Zoom Workplace Business, Zoom Workplace Business Plus, Zoom Workplace Enterprise, Zoom Workplace Enterprise Plus, and Enterprise Bundle accounts. Users with free or standalone Zoom accounts will not see the AI Companion tab in their settings and cannot manage these features through the standard configuration interface.
Access to AI Companion management is hierarchically structured based on user roles and permissions within an account. The ability to disable AI Companion features at the account level is restricted to account owners and administrators with the privilege to edit account settings. Group-level configuration requires administrators or account owners to navigate to group management settings and apply controls to specific user groups within their organization. Individual users without administrative privileges can typically manage their personal use of AI Companion features if their account or group administrators have enabled the features at higher levels, but they cannot globally disable features for their organization. This hierarchical structure is designed to give organizations control over their information governance while allowing individuals some autonomy over their personal experience with the tool.
Importantly, some Zoom accounts are not eligible for AI Companion at all. The search results indicate that “AI Companion may not be available for select verticals and select regional customers” due to regulatory, compliance, or technical limitations. Organizations in heavily regulated industries, certain geographic regions, or with specific legal requirements may find that AI Companion is simply not available as an option, which effectively eliminates the need for the disabling process. Users in these situations should verify their account eligibility with Zoom support or through their account management portal before proceeding with configuration attempts.
Accessing and Navigating to AI Companion Settings
The first practical step toward disabling Zoom AI Companion involves accessing the correct settings interface, which can be challenging due to the distributed nature of Zoom’s configuration options across multiple web portal sections. To access AI Companion settings at the account level, users must sign into the Zoom web portal using a web browser rather than the desktop client, a distinction that is critical as some settings are not accessible through the application itself. Once logged into the web portal, users should look for the navigation menu and click on “Settings” in the left navigation panel, which opens the personal settings page. From the Settings page, users should locate and click on the “AI Companion” tab, which appears alongside other setting categories such as General, Meeting, Recording, and Team Chat.
At the account level, the navigation path differs slightly for account owners and administrators seeking to manage AI Companion for their entire organization. Rather than accessing Settings directly, administrators should navigate to “Account Management” in the left navigation menu, then select “Account Settings” from the dropdown options. This takes users to the account-wide settings interface, where they can again locate and click on the “AI Companion” tab to access the master controls for their organization. This distinction between personal Settings (which apply only to the logged-in user) and Account Management Settings (which apply organization-wide) represents a common source of confusion for users, as they may adjust their personal settings without realizing that account-level settings may override or lock their choices.
The complexity of navigation is compounded by the fact that Zoom’s web portal contains numerous settings categories and the AI Companion tab may not always be immediately visible in all interface versions. Some users have reported that the AI Companion tab does not appear in their Account Settings at all, despite having eligible account types, suggesting potential bugs in the interface or account-specific implementation issues. In such cases, users may need to contact Zoom support or attempt accessing settings through alternative methods, such as initiating AI Companion within a meeting itself and following prompts to navigate to the settings page. This workaround, while not ideal, has proven effective for some users who encountered visibility issues with the AI Companion settings tab.
Disabling AI Companion at the Account Level Using the Universal Toggle
Zoom has implemented what is called the “AI Companion universal toggle” as a streamlined mechanism for account-wide management of AI Companion features on select Zoom Workplace Pro and Workplace Business accounts. This universal toggle represents a significant convenience feature for administrators seeking to disable all AI Companion capabilities simultaneously without navigating individual feature toggles. To use the universal toggle, account owners and administrators must sign into the Zoom web portal with appropriate privileges to edit account settings, navigate to Account Management, and then open Account Settings. Within Account Settings, they should locate the AI Companion tab and look for the primary toggle switch labeled “AI Companion universal toggle” or similar nomenclature.
When administrators click the universal toggle to disable AI Companion, the platform may display a verification dialog requesting confirmation of this significant action. Users should click the “Disable” button in this dialog to confirm their intention to turn off AI Companion features across the account. It is important to note that even when the universal toggle is disabled at the account level, users within the account retain some control over when and whether they use AI Companion features in their personal meetings and conversations, representing a balance between organizational governance and user autonomy. This means that while administrators can prevent organizational-wide activation of AI features, individual users may still be able to request enablement of specific features within their meetings if those features are not explicitly hidden or locked.
The availability of the universal toggle is limited to select account types, not all Zoom Workplace plans. Organizations with Pro or Business tier accounts may have access to this feature, but Enterprise customers should verify its availability within their specific license configuration. Additionally, if certain AI features are disabled and locked at the account level, Zoom provides additional administrator options to control whether the feature option is shown to meeting participants at all. When meeting summary is disabled and locked, administrators can choose whether the Meeting Summary option appears in meetings, allowing them to either hide it entirely (eliminating user requests) or display it but require administrator enablement if participants attempt to activate it. This granular control extends across other features as well, giving administrators flexible options for managing the user experience.
Disabling Individual AI Companion Features at the Account Level
Beyond the universal toggle, Zoom provides detailed control over individual AI Companion features at the account level, allowing administrators to disable specific capabilities while leaving others active according to organizational needs. The primary AI Companion features manageable at the account level include meeting summary with AI Companion, the AI Companion panel in Zoom Workplace, smart recording with AI Companion, in-meeting questions, voice recorder with AI Companion, webinar summary, and contact center features. Each of these features has its own toggle switch located within the AI Companion settings tab in Account Settings, and administrators can independently manage them based on organizational policy.
Meeting summary with AI Companion remains one of the most commonly managed features, as organizations may wish to prevent automatic summarization of meetings to maintain manual control over documentation and ensure that no meeting content is processed by AI algorithms without explicit authorization. To disable meeting summary at the account level, administrators should navigate to Account Settings > AI Companion tab, locate the “Meeting” section, and click the toggle next to “Meeting summary with AI Companion” to turn it off. When disabled at this level, the feature becomes unavailable for all users unless administrators provide the option for in-meeting activation, in which case participants can request enablement from an administrator in the meeting itself. If an administrator in the meeting approves the request, the feature becomes temporarily enabled for that meeting only.
The AI Companion panel in Zoom Workplace represents another frequently managed feature, serving as a centralized interface for users to interact with AI across various Zoom products and connected applications. To disable this panel at the account level, administrators navigate to Account Settings > AI Companion tab, locate the “General” section, and click the toggle under “AI Companion panel in Zoom Workplace” to disable it. Smart recording with AI Companion allows hosts to receive automatic analysis of recorded meetings, including smart chapters, summaries, and conversation analytics. This feature can be disabled by navigating to Account Settings > AI Companion tab, locating the “Recording” section, and toggling off “Smart Recording with AI Companion.” In-meeting questions, which allow participants to ask AI about meeting content in real time, can be disabled through Account Settings > AI Companion tab > “Meeting” section > toggle off “In-meeting questions.”
Voice recorder with AI Companion, which enables users to record and summarize conversations from their Zoom mobile application, can be disabled at the account level through Account Settings > AI Companion tab > toggling off “Voice recorder with AI Companion.” Webinar-related AI features, including webinar summary and webinar questions, are managed similarly within their own sections of the AI Companion settings. Contact Center customers can disable smart compose and other AI features specific to that module through dedicated toggles within the AI Companion settings. This granular approach allows organizations with diverse needs to maintain some AI functionality for general productivity while restricting specific features that pose compliance concerns or are simply not valued by their user base.
Group-Level Configuration and Multiple Account Management
For organizations with complex structures involving multiple groups, departments, or subsidiaries, Zoom provides group-level management of AI Companion features, allowing different organizational units to have different AI policies. Rather than applying uniform settings across an entire account, administrators can navigate to group settings and configure AI Companion features specifically for groups of users, enabling some groups to use AI while restricting it for others based on regulatory requirements, departmental function, or other organizational considerations. To manage AI Companion at the group level, administrators should sign into the Zoom web portal, navigate to the navigation menu, select “User Management” and then “Groups,” locate the specific group to configure, and then access the group’s settings.
Within group settings, administrators will find the same AI Companion feature toggles available at the group level as exist at the account level. They can selectively enable or disable meeting summary, smart recording, in-meeting questions, and other features specifically for members of that group. Group-level settings override general personal settings for group members but may themselves be overridden by account-level locks, creating a three-tiered hierarchy of control. This means that if an account-level administrator locks a setting at the account level, group administrators cannot change it, even though they may manage settings for their group in other respects.
Additionally, Zoom supports the concept of account hierarchies and sub-accounts for large organizations, which adds another layer of potential complexity. Organizations with parent and sub-account structures may find that settings are managed differently at different levels of the hierarchy, and what appears to be an available setting may actually be locked by a parent account. Understanding this hierarchy is essential for large enterprises attempting to implement consistent AI governance policies across their entire organizational structure. If administrators cannot change a setting they believe they should control, they should verify whether the setting is locked at a higher level within their account hierarchy and work with parent account administrators to unlock or adjust it if necessary.
Individual User Control and Personal Meeting Settings
Individual users who do not have administrative privileges can still manage their personal use of Zoom AI Companion features if their account or group administrators have enabled those features at higher levels. To access personal AI Companion settings, users should sign into the Zoom web portal (not through the desktop application, as some options are not available there), navigate to Settings in the left navigation menu, and click on the AI Companion tab. Once in the AI Companion settings page, users will see toggles for various features that are available to them, and they can individually enable or disable each feature according to their personal preference.
The specific features available for individual control typically include the AI Companion panel in Zoom Workplace, meeting summary with AI Companion, smart recording, in-meeting questions, voice recorder, and others, depending on what their administrator has enabled organization-wide. Users should understand that while they can disable features at their personal level, their choices only affect their own use of Zoom; they do not affect other users or override account-level locks set by administrators. If a user attempts to disable a feature and finds the toggle grayed out with a “Locked by admin” message, this indicates that an administrator has locked the setting at the account or group level, preventing individual modification. In such cases, users must contact their Zoom administrator if they wish to change the setting.
Some features can also be managed at the meeting level for individual meetings, providing users with the ability to control AI Companion on a meeting-by-meeting basis even if not globally controlled through account settings. Meeting hosts can typically enable or disable certain AI features specifically for individual meetings, such as whether to automatically start the meeting summary or allow in-meeting questions. During a meeting, hosts may access a “More” menu or options panel and toggle AI Companion features on or off for that specific meeting session. This granular control allows hosts to determine which meetings benefit from AI assistance and which should be conducted without automated AI processing, providing flexibility while still maintaining organizational governance through higher-level settings.
Disabling AI in the Zoom Desktop Client and Mobile Applications
While many AI Companion settings are primarily managed through the web portal, Zoom also provides some controls within the desktop client and mobile applications, though these are typically limited compared to the comprehensive settings available through the web interface. In the Zoom desktop client, users can access some AI settings by clicking their profile picture or name initials in the top right corner, selecting “Settings,” and then navigating to relevant sections such as “General” where AI Companion options may appear. However, the specific AI options available in the desktop client vary by feature, and not all settings that can be modified through the web portal are accessible through the application.
For the Zoom Assistant feature specifically, which is related but distinct from the broader AI Companion, users can toggle the visibility of the assistant within the desktop client through Settings > General > Zoom Assistant section, where they can check or uncheck the “Phone” option to control whether the Zoom Assistant desktop panel appears. The Zoom Assistant panel can be collapsed, repositioned, or closed entirely, giving users control over its visibility and usability within their desktop workspace. However, closing or hiding the Zoom Assistant at the desktop application level does not necessarily disable the feature organization-wide; it merely removes its visual presence from the user’s individual desktop environment.
On mobile devices running the Zoom application, AI Companion options are even more limited than on desktop, and most management typically requires accessing the web portal through a mobile browser rather than using the mobile app itself. Users should be aware that management through the web portal on a mobile browser provides the most comprehensive control over AI features, as the mobile application may not expose all available settings for local adjustment.
Troubleshooting “Locked by Admin” and Grayed-Out Settings
One of the most frustrating obstacles users encounter when attempting to manage AI Companion is finding settings that appear grayed out or are accompanied by a message stating “Locked by admin,” even when the user believes they should have permission to modify the settings. This situation arises when an administrator has intentionally locked a setting to prevent modification, either at the account level or the group level, to enforce organizational policies. Account owners sometimes encounter this issue despite believing they should have full control, which occurs because the distinction between personal Settings and Account Settings is poorly communicated, or because a previous administrator locked settings that the current owner cannot unlock without accessing the proper account-level interface.
The solution to this issue requires users to verify that they are accessing the correct settings interface for their intended scope of change. If a user attempting to manage AI Companion for their personal account or meeting finds settings locked by admin, they should first verify that they are accessing Account Settings (for account-level control) rather than personal Settings (for individual control). To unlock account-level settings, users must navigate to Account Management > Account Settings > AI Companion tab, rather than to personal Settings, and from there can modify account-level locks on features. The process involves clicking a lock icon next to settings that are locked and then confirming the unlock action, which typically requires re-entering account credentials for security purposes.
If an account owner finds that settings remain locked even after attempting to unlock them through Account Settings, they should consider several possibilities: they may not actually be the account owner or may lack admin privileges, the account may be part of a sub-account or group with its own administrative structure, or there may be a technical glitch in the Zoom platform. Users experiencing persistent issues should document their account structure, verify their role and permissions through the Account Profile section, and contact Zoom support with detailed information about which settings are locked, what role they believe they should have, and what actions they have already taken to unlock the settings. Some users report that the issue resolves itself after signing out of the desktop application, restarting the computer, and signing back in, suggesting that synchronization issues between devices and the Zoom backend can sometimes cause display problems with settings.
Another workaround that has proven effective for some users is to enable AI Companion within an actual meeting, click on the AI Companion feature, and follow any prompts that appear, which sometimes navigates the user to a settings page where previously locked toggles become accessible. This method, while unintuitive, appears to trigger a different settings interface or force a resynchronization of permissions, making locked settings modifiable. Once users gain access to the settings through this method, they can disable the features and then return to verify through the standard Account Settings interface that the changes have been applied.
Meeting-Specific Security Considerations and Bot Prevention
Beyond disabling AI Companion features, organizations concerned about unauthorized AI processing or data extraction in meetings should implement additional security measures at the meeting configuration level. Unauthorized AI bots can potentially join Zoom meetings through third-party integrations, record discussions, or extract data without explicit authorization or awareness, representing a significant security and privacy concern. To mitigate these risks, meeting hosts and administrators should configure security settings that prevent unauthorized participation. Enabling the Waiting Room feature requires that all meeting participants, including bots, be manually admitted by the host before joining, allowing the host to screen participants and remove any suspicious entries.
Additionally, requiring authentication for meeting access ensures that only authorized users with valid credentials can join, preventing anonymous participants and AI bots that cannot authenticate with organizational systems from accessing meetings. Organizations can configure this through Meeting Settings by navigating to the Security section and enabling the “Only authenticated users can join meetings” toggle, which forces all participants to sign in with valid Zoom credentials. For organizations with specific security requirements, disabling third-party integrations or preventing the installation of meeting recording applications through app management policies adds another layer of protection against unauthorized AI recording or data extraction.
When meeting summary or other AI features are enabled at the account level, organizations should consider implementing required consent mechanisms where meeting participants must actively agree to participate in meetings where AI is recording and processing their communications. Zoom offers the ability to configure custom messages for AI Companion use that display to meeting participants, requesting explicit consent before recording. When this feature is enabled, non-host participants join with their camera and microphone disabled until they accept the custom AI Companion notice, which displays for ninety seconds with options to accept or decline. This approach ensures informed consent and respects participants’ autonomy regarding their participation in AI-processed meetings.
Privacy Implications and Data Handling Practices
Understanding Zoom’s data handling practices for AI Companion is essential for organizations making decisions about enabling or disabling these features, particularly those subject to data protection regulations like GDPR or HIPAA. Zoom publicly commits that it does not use customer audio, video, chat, screen sharing, attachments, or other communications content to train Zoom’s own AI models or third-party AI models. This statement provides assurance that enabling AI Companion features does not contribute to broader model training that could expose organizational communications to external use or analysis beyond the scope of the specific feature being used.
However, Zoom does share relevant data with third-party AI model providers when using features that rely on external models. For example, when a user generates a meeting summary, the meeting transcript is transmitted to the third-party model provider to generate the summary, and this data may be processed within U.S.-based data centers according to Zoom’s policy statements. Organizations subject to data residency requirements or international data transfer restrictions should understand these practices and potentially disable features that require third-party model processing if data transfer policies are incompatible with their regulatory obligations. Zoom indicates that they “evaluate and update our models periodically and those used to support Zoom AI Companion may change from time to time,” meaning that the specific third-party providers and data handling practices may evolve over time, requiring periodic reassessment of organizational policies.
For organizations requiring complete control over AI processing and refusing all third-party data sharing, the only viable option is to disable AI Companion features entirely at the account level, ensuring that no meeting transcripts, conversations, or communications content is processed by any AI system, whether Zoom’s own or external providers. Organizations that allow some AI Companion features should regularly review Zoom’s privacy whitepaper and data handling documentation to ensure ongoing compatibility with their policies, particularly when significant platform updates or model changes occur.
Recent Developments and Future Features Coming to Zoom AI Companion
As of December 2025, Zoom released AI Companion 3.0, introducing new capabilities and changing the landscape of AI management within the platform. The new version introduces agentic workflows, personal workflows in beta, expanded web-based AI surfaces, and enhanced retrieval capabilities that allow AI to search across multiple data sources within an organization’s Zoom ecosystem and connected third-party applications. These new capabilities expand the scope of what AI Companion can access and process, potentially expanding the scope of organizational concerns requiring administrative management and control.
Several features are coming soon that will further impact how organizations need to manage AI capabilities: daily reflection reports (expected November 2025) that summarize meetings and tasks, enhanced “prepare me for a meeting” skills (expected October 2025) that provide pre-meeting briefings, my notes capabilities (expected soon) for capturing insights across various meeting types, personal workflows (currently in beta) for automating follow-up tasks, custom agent builders (expected September 2025) for creating tailored AI agents, and agentic AI features for Zoom Docs (coming soon). These expanding capabilities mean that organizations implementing AI governance policies should anticipate that disabling specific features may need to be revisited as new features launch, and that the complexity of AI management within Zoom will continue to increase.
Notably, the release of AI Companion as a standalone product available for Zoom Basic users at ten dollars monthly represents a shift in Zoom’s monetization strategy and means that more users will have exposure to AI capabilities, potentially increasing demand for education about how to disable features. Additionally, Zoom has indicated that Zoom Basic users can try select AI Companion 3.0 capabilities even on the free tier, which may introduce AI features to users who do not expect them and increase the need for clear communication about how to disable unwanted capabilities.
Putting AI Companion Back in Your Control
Disabling Zoom AI Companion requires navigating a complex landscape of hierarchical permissions, varied feature toggles, and sometimes counterintuitive interfaces that have evolved as Zoom’s AI capabilities have expanded. Successfully managing AI Companion involves understanding the distinction between account-level, group-level, and personal settings; recognizing the difference between the personal Settings interface and the Account Management Settings interface; becoming familiar with the specific features that can be controlled; and troubleshooting common issues like locked settings and grayed-out toggles that impede user control. Organizations seeking to disable AI Companion entirely should use the universal toggle feature available on select account types to uniformly disable features across their accounts, while organizations seeking granular control can leverage individual feature toggles and group-level settings to create nuanced policies that align with their operational needs and regulatory requirements.
For organizations concerned about privacy, data protection, and maintaining human agency in meetings, the most straightforward approach is to navigate to Account Management > Account Settings > AI Companion tab and disable the universal toggle if available, or systematically disable individual features including meeting summary, smart recording, in-meeting questions, and AI Companion panel options. Users struggling with locked settings should verify they are accessing Account Management Settings rather than personal Settings and should not hesitate to contact Zoom support if settings remain inaccessible after multiple attempts to unlock them, as technical glitches or account configuration issues may require administrator intervention. Meeting hosts and administrators should also implement complementary security measures including waiting rooms, authentication requirements, and consent notices to ensure comprehensive protection against unauthorized AI processing even when features are enabled organizationally.
Looking forward, as AI Companion 3.0 and subsequent releases introduce increasingly sophisticated capabilities for data integration, automated workflows, and agentic operations, organizations should establish regular cadences for reviewing their AI governance policies, auditing which AI features are enabled or disabled, and assessing whether current settings remain aligned with organizational values and regulatory requirements. The evolution of Zoom’s AI platform will likely continue to expand the scope and sophistication of features requiring management, making proactive governance strategies essential for organizations prioritizing privacy, security, and user autonomy in their digital communication tools.
