If You Use Google Chrome, Your Device May Have Secretly Downloaded a 4GB AI Model

Here's how to check for the hidden file and delete it from your machine.

4 min read

Google Chrome could be taking up some extra storage space on your device. Based on reports from earlier this month, the browser has been automatically downloading a 4GB AI model onto some users' hard drives without their permission. This isn't the first time Google has discreetly interfered with users' devices, and privacy advocates say the practice may violate data laws.

The mysterious file in question is Gemini Nano, an AI model that runs on devices such as smartphones and laptops rather than in the cloud. According to Alexander Hanff, a Swedish computer scientist and lawyer known as That Privacy Guy, it's been installed on some Chrome browsers without permission. You won't know when it's been downloaded onto your device, either.

Hanff said Gemini Nano will only be installed if the device...

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