Google Chrome is in the process of downloading a 4 GB AI model to your device. Here’s how you can disable it.
Chrome has autonomously decided to use your storage without needing to ask for permission.
Although Google Chrome remains the most widely used browser, it is facing competition from a new generation of AI browsers like Perplexity Comet, Dia, and others. To remain competitive, Google is incorporating new AI features into Chrome, which isn’t necessarily negative, but this time it has overstepped a boundary.
Check your file manager for a folder named “OptGuideOnDeviceModel.” If you find it, that means Chrome has been utilizing your storage as its own server. Inside this folder is a file called “weights.bin,” approximately 4 GB in size, which contains Gemini Nano, Google’s AI model designed for on-device use.
Privacy advocate Alexander Hanff discovered this behavior by analyzing macOS's filesystem event logs, which monitor any file created or altered at the OS level.
On a newly created Chrome profile, with no input from users, the entire 4 GB model was installed in less than 15 minutes while a tab remained open.
Was there any request for this?
Absolutely not. Chrome doesn’t even seek permission to install the model; it simply does it on its own accord. The model downloads automatically once Chrome determines that your hardware meets the necessary criteria, even before you’ve utilized any AI features.
Moreover, if you locate and delete the file, Chrome re-downloads it the next time you start the browser. Hanff mentioned that “the user’s deletion is seen as a temporary state to be rectified, rather than a command to be honored.”
The situation takes another twist. The most prominent AI feature in Chrome, the “AI Mode” button located in the address bar, doesn’t utilize the local model. Instead, it forwards your queries to Google Gemini servers. The on-device model supports less visible functions such as “Help me write” in text fields and local scam detection.
What are the implications and how can you disable this?
Though it seems to only impact your device's storage, Hanff pointed out that it has significant environmental ramifications. He estimates that if 500 million devices were to receive this download, the associated bandwidth would result in approximately 30,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions—equivalent to about 6,500 cars running for a year. This is solely for the delivery, not the actual usage.
Google should require user confirmation for this download. In the meantime, you can disable it by visiting “chrome://flags.” Look for “Enables optimization guide on device” and switch it off. While this process is more complex than it should be, it is effective.
Rachit Agarwal is an experienced technology journalist with over seven years of expertise in the consumer technology sector.
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Google Chrome is in the process of downloading a 4 GB AI model to your device. Here’s how you can disable it.
Google Chrome is discreetly downloading a 4 GB Gemini Nano model to your device without your permission. Here's an explanation of what it is, its location on your computer, and the steps you can take regarding it.