Chrome’s AI features may be hogging 4GB of your computer storage
Chrome’s AI features may be hogging 4GB of your computer storage
Chrome 的 AI 功能可能正在占用你电脑 4GB 的存储空间
Google Chrome may be taking up more of your storage than expected thanks to a large on-device AI model file that, in some cases, is being automatically downloaded to the browser’s system folders. Users who have noticed unexplained drops in their available desktop device storage are now discovering that Chrome is installing a 4GB weights.bin file inside their browser directory when certain AI features are enabled.
由于一个大型的端侧（on-device）AI 模型文件在某些情况下会被自动下载到浏览器的系统文件夹中，Google Chrome 占用的存储空间可能比你预期的要多。一些用户注意到桌面设备的可用存储空间出现不明原因的下降，现在发现当启用某些 AI 功能时，Chrome 会在浏览器目录下安装一个 4GB 大小的 weights.bin 文件。
The weights.bin file in question is connected to Google’s Gemini Nano AI model, which powers Chrome AI tools like scam detection, writing assistance, autofill, and suggestion features. As the Gemini Nano model is designed to run locally, it needs to use training parameters stored on your device rather than pulling information from cloud-based models. That provides some privacy benefits, but isn’t ideal if you’re low on storage — especially as users aren’t being clearly notified about the file size requirements.
这个 weights.bin 文件与 Google 的 Gemini Nano AI 模型有关，该模型为 Chrome 的诈骗检测、写作辅助、自动填充和建议功能等 AI 工具提供支持。由于 Gemini Nano 模型旨在本地运行，它需要使用存储在你设备上的训练参数，而不是从云端模型获取信息。这虽然带来了一些隐私方面的好处，但如果你的存储空间不足，这并不理想——尤其是用户并没有被明确告知该文件的大小要求。
If you have certain Gemini AI features enabled on Chrome, it’s likely that the 4GB file has already been downloaded to your system. You can check by opening your Chrome data folders and inspecting the OptGuideOnDeviceModel directory for the weights.bin file.
如果你在 Chrome 上启用了某些 Gemini AI 功能，那么这个 4GB 的文件很可能已经下载到了你的系统中。你可以通过打开 Chrome 数据文件夹并检查 OptGuideOnDeviceModel 目录中是否存在 weights.bin 文件来进行确认。
You can’t simply delete this to free up space, however — if you still have AI features enabled, Chrome may re-download it again in the future. That means you’ll need to head to Settings > System and toggle off the On-Device AI option to remove those features and prevent the file from coming back.
不过，你不能简单地通过删除它来释放空间——如果你仍然开启了 AI 功能，Chrome 未来可能会再次下载它。这意味着你需要前往“设置”>“系统”，并关闭“端侧 AI”（On-Device AI）选项，以移除这些功能并防止该文件再次出现。
Google does specify that “Gemini Nano’s exact size may vary as the browser updates the model,” but this information is presented in a lengthy guide for built-in AI features rather than at the point of enabling them in Chrome. If Google had made the storage requirements clearer to users — or provided an option to power Chrome AI features with cloud-based models — this confusion could have been avoided.
Google 确实说明了“Gemini Nano 的确切大小可能会随着浏览器更新模型而变化”，但这些信息是放在一篇关于内置 AI 功能的长篇指南中，而不是在 Chrome 中启用这些功能时提示的。如果 Google 能向用户更明确地说明存储要求，或者提供一个选项让 Chrome AI 功能通过云端模型运行，这种困扰本是可以避免的。
“We’ve offered Gemini Nano for Chrome since 2024 as a lightweight, on-device model,” Google spokesperson Scott Westover tells The Verge. “It powers important security capabilities like scam detection and developer APIs without sending your data to the cloud. While this requires some local space on the desktop to run, the model will automatically uninstall if the device is low on resources. In February, we began rolling out the ability for users to easily turn off and remove the model directly in Chrome settings. Once disabled the model will no longer download or update. More details in our help center article.”
“自 2024 年以来，我们一直为 Chrome 提供 Gemini Nano，作为一种轻量级的端侧模型，”Google 发言人 Scott Westover 告诉 The Verge。“它支持诈骗检测和开发者 API 等重要的安全功能，且无需将你的数据发送到云端。虽然这需要占用一些桌面本地空间来运行，但如果设备资源不足，模型会自动卸载。今年 2 月，我们开始推出让用户可以直接在 Chrome 设置中轻松关闭并移除该模型的功能。一旦禁用，模型将不再下载或更新。更多详情请参阅我们的帮助中心文章。”