What are the differences between Leo's AI Models? Follow
Large Language Models (LLMs) are advanced AI systems trained to generate human-like responses. Brave’s AI Assistant, Leo, provides options for users to choose the appropriate model and model configuration for their privacy and functionality needs. These LLMs include the latest Qwen, Meta's Llama, and Anthropic's Claude Haiku and Claude Sonnet models, all of which Brave hosts through our own secure infrastructure. While the models have different capabilities, Brave ensures user privacy regardless of which model is used and how it is served.
LLMs Explained
Larger models like Qwen and Llama have more parameters and complexity, allowing them to handle more complex tasks but also requiring more computing power to run efficiently. Models trained on diverse data like Claude Sonnet have broad knowledge, while specialized models like Claude Haiku have domain expertise like coding or legal analysis. Some LLMs excel at text generation, while others are better at question answering or data analysis tasks. Speed will depend on the model size, the power of the infrastructure running the model, the techniques used to optimize it, how much content it is processing, and how complex the job requested is.
Importantly, all models in Brave Leo are managed and operated exclusively by Brave in secure environments, with no data sharing between Brave and the original model creators. For example, your use of Llama in Brave Leo is totally independent from the model creator, Meta.
Brave Leo offers options for choosing the appropriate model for your requirements. You can use the Brave-hosted Automatic mode, manually select models from the list provided, or, for advanced users, connect Leo to your own model (See BYOM).
Privacy Protections
Models will change from time-to-time, but Brave's privacy protections will protect you no matter what model you are using:
- Your conversations are not stored or logged by Brave after a response is generated. No personal data such as your IP address or conversation transcripts are retained. And your conversations are not used for model training purposes.
- Conversation data is discarded from Brave's servers immediately after the chat session ends.
- Your chat history exists only on your device in your local storage. Chats can be removed from your device in Settings by selection the option to “Clear Leo data”.
- Chats can be temporary, meaning they aren’t kept in your local storage, and chat history can be disabled entirely so conversations don’t exist on your device or anywhere else after you close them.
Selecting Models
The Leo panel includes a 3-dot icon in the header where you can change the Settings. You will see options for Language Models which you can select manually or choose to continue with the default `Automatic mode`.
You can also open advanced settings which will take you to brave://settings/leo-ai where you can select which model you want to use by default every time you use Leo.
The models and features available in Brave Leo depend on whether you are using the free version or have a premium subscription:
| Feature | Free Leo | Leo Premium |
| Rate limits | Reasonable rate limits | Higher rate limits |
| Privacy protections |
No chats in the cloud No context in the cloud No logs Account-free access |
No chats in the cloud No context in the cloud No logs User data is not used to train the AI models Product usage is unlinkable with subscription information |
| Available Models |
Qwen 14B Llama 3.1 8B Llama 3.2 Vision Claude 3.5 Haiku |
Qwen 14B Llama 3.1 8B Llama 3.2 Vision Claude 3.5 Haiku Claude Sonnet 4 DeepSeek R1 |
Regardless of which model you choose, Brave cannot connect your subscription information to your actual usage of the models, providing an extra layer of privacy for your conversations. The email you used to create your account is unlinkable to your day-to-day use of Leo, making this a uniquely private experience.
Brave's commitment to user privacy extends to its LLM offerings, providing a secure and transparent experience. With all models hosted through Brave's secure infrastructure, Brave ensures user data remains private and protected. Users can explore different LLMs with varying capabilities while maintaining control over their personal information.
Note: Updated June 30, 2025 - Brave Leo now hosts all AI models, including Claude models, through our own secure infrastructure. Previously, some models were served through external providers, but we have updated our hosting arrangement to ensure all user interactions remain within Brave's privacy-preserving environment.