diff --git a/lib/utility.js b/lib/utility.js
index 2cbd696e..3af1b69a 100644
--- a/lib/utility.js
+++ b/lib/utility.js
@@ -201,7 +201,6 @@ function counters () {
 function simd (simd) {
   return sharp.simd(is.bool(simd) ? simd : null);
 }
-simd(true);
 
 /**
  * Block libvips operations at runtime.