Google rolls out toggle to disable Gemini Nano AI model in Chrome, which auto-downloads about 4 GB of space

Google started rolling out an "On-device AI" toggle in February, allowing Chrome users to turn off Gemini Nano and remove the model file. Once disabled, the model will no longer download or update, and will automatically uninstall if the device is low on resources.

The Gemini Nano file began auto-downloading for Chrome users in 2024 after Google built the model into the browser to enable on-device scam-detection features and developer APIs while keeping data on users' devices rather than sending it to the cloud.

Disabling Gemini Nano means certain security features will not be available and sites using on-device APIs will behave differently. If users directly uninstall the file in the directory, Chrome will silently, automatically redownload it the next time the browser reboots.