Web browsers should become outmoded soon. It was fine for bootstrapping the web, but now to keep up a browser must emulate the operating system and more in a single app. This pressure is the centralizing factor in browser dominance. Ditch the features, drop the spy protocol (http), just get the files.
Turn what off? HTTP is how you receive the web page in the first place. It is not, in itself, causing data to be sent from your computer to others. That happens either because of a script on the page or because you request a web page (i.e. the browser sends headers).
I can't speak for the user who you are responding to, but an AI maxi might believe that an AI powered interface will take over all information retrieval.