Google Chrome Demands 20GB of Disk Space for Local Gemini Models
Chrome documentation now lists a minimum of 20GB of free storage alongside compatible hardware to run on-device generative models, adding disk space to its long-standing appetite for memory.
A newly added settings document for Chrome reveals that running on-device generative artificial intelligence now requires at least 20GB of free disk space as well as compatible system hardware, according to a report by habr.
The footprint supports Gemini Nano, a lightweight model that Google has integrated into the desktop browser to handle text summaries, web page comparisons, and complex form-filling without routing sensitive user input to remote cloud servers. Earlier rollouts distributed a model weights file named weights.bin measuring roughly 3GB to 4GB, which the browser could automatically evict if local storage ran critically low. The expanded 20GB headroom requirement reflects broader operational space for the model and its agentic web routines.
Users can disable the local generative features entirely in the browser settings. Toggling the toggle off instructs Chrome to purge the downloaded model files immediately, stop background updates, and refrain from pulling down future replacements.
The local desktop push aligns with Google's aggressive migration toward generative tools across its ecosystem. As part of that transition, the company scheduled the complete shutdown of Google Assistant on mobile devices for early September 2026, removing fallback options and making Gemini the mandatory voice and system assistant on supported devices.
Source: habr
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