How to remove assistant from the phone Xiaomi Mi 9: the complete guide

Owners of Xiaomi’s flagship Mi 9 devices often face the intrusiveness of built-in voice assistants that can be activated accidentally or waste system resources. Removing or completely disabling Google Assistant and Mi AI becomes a necessity for those who prefer minimalism or use alternative solutions. Modern MIUI shells deeply integrate these services, making them a common removal through the application menu impossible.

In this guide, we will look at safe and effective methods for deactivating system components, learn how to use ADB (Android Debug Bridge) to deep clean the system without obtaining root rights, and will also discuss the standard settings that allow you to limit the functionality of assistants to a minimum, while maintaining the stability of the Xiaomi Mi 9.

Features of integration of assistants in MIUI

The MIUI system installed on the Xiaomi Mi 9 is based on Android, but has significant modifications. Voice assistants here are system applications protected from standard removal. This is done to provide basic functionality like Google Now or voice search. However, for many users, these features are redundant.

The challenge is that simply turning off the settings doesn't always take the process away from memory. Background services can continue to work, consuming battery power. To completely eliminate it, you need to understand the architecture of the packages used by the shell.

It is important to distinguish between Google Assistant and Mi AI. The first is a service of Google and is pre-installed on all certified devices; the second is the development of Xiaomi itself, which is primarily focused on the Chinese market, but present in global firmware.

⚠️ Note: Before making changes to system files, be sure to create a full backup of data, as removing critical components can lead to unstable interface operation.

Preparation of the device for modification

Before you start removing system components, you need to prepare Xiaomi Mi 9. The first step is to activate the developer mode. This is a hidden menu that allows you to manage debugging and other advanced features.

To activate, go to Settings → About Phone and quickly press 7 times on the MIUI Version. After the notification “You became a developer” appears, you can proceed to the next steps.

• 📱 Turn on Debugging. USB menu "For developers".
• 💻 Install the drivers. ADB on your computer (Windows, macOS or Linux).
• 🔌 Use an original or quality cable USB-C stable-connection.

Without debugging, the computer will not be able to send commands to the device. Xiaomi Mi 9 will request debugging permission when it is first connected - it must be confirmed by ticking "Always Allow".

Disconnection through system settings

The safest, but not always the most effective, method is to use the built-in restrictions: it doesn't delete files, but blocks them from running. For Google Assistant, the way is through the settings of the Google app itself.

Open the Google app, go to the assistant settings, and look for "Google Assistant," and you can turn off "OK, Google" activation and lock the screen, and that will prevent accidental wake-ups.

Settings → Google → Settings for Google apps → Search and Assistant → Google Assistant

For Mi AI, the situation is more complicated. In global firmware, it can often be found in the section Additional → Mi AI. If such a item is missing, then the service is hidden deeper or integrated into the Quick Search Box system process.

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If you don’t plan on using voice search at all, you can turn off the microphone in the permissions for the Google app, but this will limit the functionality of the keyboard.

Removal via ADB (Android Debug Bridge)

The most radical and effective way is to use the ADB command line, which allows you to "delete" the application for the current user without affecting the system partition.

Connect the Xiaomi Mi 9 to your computer, open the command line (Terminal or CMD) in the folder with ADB and enter the connection check command:

adb devices

If the device is displayed with device status, you can proceed. To remove Google Assistant, you use the command pm uninstall --user 0. This hides the application from the launcher and stops its processes.

adb shell pm uninstall --user 0 com.google.android.apps.googleassistant

Similarly, Mi AI is removed. Be careful when entering packet names, as an error can lead to the removal of the wrong component.

⚠️ Note: Do not delete the com.google.android.googlequicksearchbox completely unless you are sure of the consequences.This may disrupt the widgets and voice input in the Gboard keyboard.

Elimination of residual processes and widgets

Even after the main packages are removed, the Xiaomi Mi 9 desktop may still have traces, often the Google Discover widget to the left of the home screen, and you need to change the launcher settings to remove it.

Clutch the empty space on your desktop or pinch it with two fingers to enter edit mode. Select Settings (cogs) and find "Negative Screen" or "Google Discover." Switch the slider to "Off."

Sometimes residual processes can hang in memory, and to clean them, you can force the remaining services to stop through the application menu:

• 🛑 Go to Settings. → Annexes → All applications.
• 🔍 Find Google or Assistant".
• ⚡ Click Stop and Clear Data.

This ensures that no background scripts will run until the next system reboot or upgrade.The Xiaomi Mi 9 has enough power to ignore these processes, but removing them frees up RAM.

Recovery of Remote Components

If you realize that the function was necessary after deleting, or if the system started to work incorrectly, the components can be easily returned. Since the files are physically left in the /system partition, reinstall is sufficient for the current user.

Use the cmd package install-existing command (for newer versions of Android) or simply reset the ADB settings. For Xiaomi Mi 9, the following Google Assistant recovery command is relevant:

adb shell cmd package install-existing com.google.android.apps.googleassistant

An alternative, simpler way is to reset the phone to factory settings, which will return MIUI to its original state with all the services pre-installed, but it takes time to reconfigure the device.

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Using ADB allows you to delete applications reversibly, which is safer than using Root rights, since it does not violate the integrity of the system partition.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)