Google Chrome is downloading a 4 GB Gemini Nano model onto users' machines without consent, with no opt-in, no opt-out short of enterprise tooling, and an automatic re-download every time the user deletes it. The pattern is identical to the Anthropic Claude Desktop case I wrote about last month, but the scale is between two and three orders of magnitude larger. This article does the legal analysis and, for the first time, the environmental analysis. The numbers are not small.
Downloading 4 GB of data without your consent is a pretty big issue. If you’re on a bandwidth starved or data capped network, that becomes a huge problem. Wasting 4GB of space on this nonsense that users aren’t gonna use too is pretty absurd.
I didn’t write my comment to disagree with your point or to make a bad faith argument. I merely wanted to point out another thing that is of greater concern to me and most likely many others. That is in no way mutually exclusive to your point and doesn’t invalidate it. So get that snark out of here.
I frankly don’t think the amount of “trees being burnt” from posting a comment is relevant compared to the potential of hundreds of devices performing a unnecessary download. Hell, a billionaire’s carbon footprint in a couple seconds likely already far exceeds that. At least this conversation is going somewhere. In any case, this is an unquantifiable cost anyways.
Just because the software is running on your device doesn’t mean it can’t phone home. You might not care about your local storage but 4GB is pretty steep for some of us.
Not to mention the performance impact of actually running the thing.
Probably a ridiculous notion but personally I wouldn’t feel 100% sure my device isn’t joining a distributed bot net ai datacenter for other people’s slop generation, burning my energy, my battery, my ssd (higher temps shorten their half life) without my consent
How many trees to send some text? Lol, my aging phone depletes its battery more if I don’t use it xD
I just have a high level of distrust of FAANG, and of proprietary software; I still use most stuff I’m not very extreme in practice
Who’s to say that local LLM model won’t be used when we leave our device on standby, to ease a usage spike from other users? It’s technically possible, the things stopping many companies are the potential legal trouble (but there’s an ever longer TOS for that), different levels of morality, company culture, etc.; many botnets were from simple games installed by regular people connected on a residential line. Some VPNs have been caught using their clients line as an endpoint for other clients in different countries
You could say it’s a ridiculous thought for now regarding this “hidden” Gemini local LLM, I just feel like it’s a possibilty.
this makes zero sense because it’s on device, it’s no difference than the damage that just owning a phone is costing, are people here special?
I swear people just want a reason to freak out. Atleast make sense if you’re going to post such a stupid article title.
Downloading 4 GB of data without your consent is a pretty big issue. If you’re on a bandwidth starved or data capped network, that becomes a huge problem. Wasting 4GB of space on this nonsense that users aren’t gonna use too is pretty absurd.
nice strawman, how many trees did you burn posting this comment?
I didn’t write my comment to disagree with your point or to make a bad faith argument. I merely wanted to point out another thing that is of greater concern to me and most likely many others. That is in no way mutually exclusive to your point and doesn’t invalidate it. So get that snark out of here.
I frankly don’t think the amount of “trees being burnt” from posting a comment is relevant compared to the potential of hundreds of devices performing a unnecessary download. Hell, a billionaire’s carbon footprint in a couple seconds likely already far exceeds that. At least this conversation is going somewhere. In any case, this is an unquantifiable cost anyways.
i would burn a whole forest right now just to unread your comment
worse than a 4gb llm already
no shit
deleted by creator
you’re right!
Just because the software is running on your device doesn’t mean it can’t phone home. You might not care about your local storage but 4GB is pretty steep for some of us.
Not to mention the performance impact of actually running the thing.
Honestly shouldn’t even explain it to him. With a thought process like his he deserves what’s coming to him.
strawman and entirely missed the point of the article, howamy trees did you burn scrolling Instagram today?
Probably a ridiculous notion but personally I wouldn’t feel 100% sure my device isn’t joining a distributed
bot netai datacenter for other people’s slop generation, burning my energy, my battery, my ssd (higher temps shorten their half life) without my consentanother strawman, it’s a local LLM, just using your phone means youre doing irresponsible damage. how many trees did you burn with this comment?
How many trees to send some text? Lol, my aging phone depletes its battery more if I don’t use it xD
I just have a high level of distrust of FAANG, and of proprietary software; I still use most stuff I’m not very extreme in practice
Who’s to say that local LLM model won’t be used when we leave our device on standby, to ease a usage spike from other users? It’s technically possible, the things stopping many companies are the potential legal trouble (but there’s an ever longer TOS for that), different levels of morality, company culture, etc.; many botnets were from simple games installed by regular people connected on a residential line. Some VPNs have been caught using their clients line as an endpoint for other clients in different countries
You could say it’s a ridiculous thought for now regarding this “hidden” Gemini local LLM, I just feel like it’s a possibilty.
Half life? ;)