Browser maker Brave just escalated its battle against Google Search with a new detailed answers feature for its AI-powered search engine. The privacy-focused company's "Ask Brave" feature delivers comprehensive, report-style responses - complete with videos, links, and follow-up chat - positioning itself as a direct competitor to Google's AI Overviews. With users already generating over 15 million AI answers daily, Brave's betting that privacy-conscious searchers want the depth of ChatGPT without the data tracking.
Brave just fired another shot in the search wars. The privacy-focused browser announced Monday it's rolling out "Ask Brave," a detailed AI answer feature that transforms search queries into comprehensive, report-style responses complete with videos, links, and interactive chat capabilities.
The timing isn't coincidental. As Google continues expanding its AI Overviews globally - including a Spanish rollout last week - Brave's positioning itself as the privacy-first alternative to AI-powered search. The company's already seeing impressive traction, with users generating more than 15 million AI answers daily through its existing summarization feature.
"While AI Answers give our users quick summaries, Ask Brave provides longer answers, follow-ups, and a chat mode enhanced with Deep Research," Josep M. Pujol, Brave's Chief of Search, told TechCrunch. The feature automatically detects query intent, delivering contextually relevant enrichments including "videos, news articles, products, businesses, shopping, and more - in the right place, at the right time."
Using Ask Brave couldn't be simpler. Users can click the ask button next to the search box, tap the ask tab on results pages, or - for power users - append double question marks ("??") to any query. The search engine automatically recognizes whether you need a quick summary or detailed analysis, switching between its AI Answers and Ask Brave features seamlessly.
What sets Brave apart isn't just functionality - it's privacy. While Google's AI features come with the company's extensive data collection apparatus, Brave encrypts all chat conversations and automatically deletes them after 24 hours of inactivity. For users increasingly concerned about digital privacy, this represents a genuine alternative to Google's AI-powered search dominance.
The format mirrors what users expect from ChatGPT or - comprehensive responses with embedded links, video carousels, and the ability to ask follow-up questions or request format changes. But unlike standalone AI chatbots, Ask Brave grounds its responses using Brave's own search API, combining real-time web data with large language model capabilities.
