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Does Chrome’s On-Device AI Use Your Data? Privacy and Storage Explained

Chrome’s on-device AI models are stored locally, but Gemini in Chrome handles page context separately. Here’s what Google says is processed, stored and controllable.
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Yes—but the answer depends on which Chrome AI feature you mean. Google says Chrome’s on-device generative AI models are downloaded to eligible devices and process data locally. Gemini in Chrome is a separate assistant: it can process the current tab’s content and URL, as well as content and URLs from tabs you choose to share. Turning off the on-device AI setting does not disable every AI feature in Chrome.

Does Chrome’s on-device AI use your data?

Chrome’s on-device generative AI uses data to perform its feature, but Google says the processing for features that rely on these models happens locally. The models themselves are downloaded and stored on eligible devices. Google says local processing “can enhance privacy and speed.” See Google Chrome Help’s explanation of on-device generative AI models.

Google lists tasks such as writing or rephrasing, scam warnings, page summaries and tab organization among the uses for on-device models. The local-processing statement applies to features that rely on those models; it is not a blanket promise about every AI feature available through Chrome. In particular, Gemini in Chrome has separate data handling.

On-device AI and Gemini in Chrome: what is different?

Question Chrome on-device generative AI Gemini in Chrome
Where are the models? Models are downloaded and stored on eligible devices, according to Google Chrome Help. A distinct assistant with its own data-handling description; the on-device model setting does not describe its handling. See Google’s Gemini Apps Privacy Hub.
What page information can be involved? Google describes processing as local for features that rely on these models. The cited Help page does not give a precise file size for each model. By default, Gemini uses the current tab. On a computer, you can share up to 10 open tabs; page content and URLs from the current and shared tabs may be processed. Relevant history URLs may also be collected if you ask it to find pages you visited. See Google’s Gemini in Chrome Help and the Privacy Hub.
What happens to page content? The cited Help page says models are stored on-device and describes model-powered processing as local. Google says page content used by Gemini in Chrome is logged to the Google Account temporarily and does not appear in Gemini Apps Activity. Website information, audio and files shared with Gemini are stored in Gemini Apps Activity if Keep Activity is on. The cited notice gives no universal deletion deadline.

Gemini may process page content that is not visible to you. These details matter if you use the page-context assistant: the presence of a locally stored model in Chrome does not mean Gemini in Chrome is using that model or handling shared page data in the same way.

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How much storage does Chrome’s on-device AI need?

Google Chrome Help says a device needs approximately 20 GB of free disk space for the model download. That is a free-space requirement, not the published size of the model files. Google does not state a precise file size for each model on the cited Help page, and says requirements may change. Check the current Chrome Help page for the latest eligibility and setup details.

Downloads also require an unmetered connection, sufficient device performance and supported hardware. Not every device is eligible. Chrome for Developers reported on October 1, 2025, that CPU inference for Gemini Nano was rolling out in Chrome 140 on Linux, macOS and Windows, expanding support beyond GPUs. That dated rollout is not a guarantee that every device can run every local feature; see Chrome for Developers’ rollout announcement.

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How do I delete Chrome’s on-device AI models?

  1. In Chrome, open Settings.
  2. Select AI Innovations, then On-device AI.
  3. Switch the on-device AI setting off. Chrome deletes the on-device generative AI model files and will not download them again while the setting remains off. Features that depend on those models stop working.

Google identifies this setting as the only supported way to manage the generative AI models. Manually locating or deleting files is not recommended and may not stop Chrome from downloading them again if the setting permits it. Some Chrome AI features do not rely on the on-device generative models, so they may continue to work after you switch this setting off.

What Gemini in Chrome stores—and when

Google says page content used by Gemini in Chrome is logged temporarily to your Google Account and does not appear in Gemini Apps Activity. Separately, information from websites visited with the feature, plus audio and files shared with Gemini, is stored in Gemini Apps Activity if Keep Activity is on. Google’s Privacy Hub describes these categories but does not give one universal retention or deletion deadline.

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When using Gemini in Chrome, check the account’s Activity setting and consider what page context you share. The on-device AI toggle manages the downloaded generative models; it is not a substitute for reviewing Gemini’s separate data and Activity behavior.

Availability and account conditions for Gemini in Chrome

Gemini in Chrome is not available to every user or in every context. Google lists requirements involving a supported region and language, a Chromebook Plus, Mac or Windows computer, current Chrome, sign-in and a minimum age. It is unavailable in Incognito mode, and work or school accounts may require administrator access. Google says availability is rolling out gradually; see its current Gemini in Chrome availability page for applicable conditions.

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For managed accounts, Google’s enterprise privacy statement says: “Your prompts and the data Gemini in Chrome reads while browsing are not used to train Google’s public models.” This protection is scoped to the managed-account context described by Chrome Enterprise’s privacy and security documentation. Enterprise policies can be configured, and guarantees depend on the feature and policy; other Google AI products opened through Chrome may have their own terms. See also Chrome Enterprise’s overview of generative AI features and policies and its policy-setting documentation. Do not assume these managed-account protections apply automatically to a personal account.

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Auto browse is not the same as on-device AI

Gemini in Chrome’s auto browse is an experimental task-completion feature, not another name for local model processing. Google warns that web pages may contain prompt injection, and that an agent can access signed-in sites and may share information with websites to complete tasks. It can make mistakes or produce unexpected results. Google advises users to monitor sensitive or important tasks and supervise the agent. See Google’s auto browse guidance.

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