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Brave makes a privacy-focused web browser and search engine that block trackers and ads, earning money through its own ads and premium subscriptions.
Brave is a web browser for people who are tired of being followed around the internet. When you use most browsers, advertisers and trackers quietly watch what you do and build a profile of you. Brave blocks that by default, and it also strips out most ads, which makes pages load faster and use less data. The company also runs its own independent search engine, Brave Search, so a user can search the web without handing their queries to Google.
The business has a clever twist. Instead of just blocking everything, Brave offers its own ads that respect your privacy. These ads are matched to you on your own device, not on a company server, so nobody can build a lasting profile of who you are. Advertisers pay Brave to show these ads, and Brave shares a cut of that money with the people who choose to see them, paid in a digital token called BAT. There is also a premium plan that removes ads entirely and adds features like a built-in VPN and firewall. That split matters. Most browsers are free because the company behind them profits from your data or pushes you toward its own services. Brave is trying to prove you can pay for the internet with attention instead of surveillance. It faces tough competition: Google controls Chrome and the search market, and Microsoft bundles Edge into Windows. Brave stays small next to them, but it has built a loyal audience of privacy-minded users and organizations that want to avoid tracking.
The company was founded in 2015 by Brendan Eich, the creator of JavaScript and a former Mozilla chief who left after a controversy over a political donation. Brave is private, backed by venture funding, and runs its own advertising platform rather than relying on the big ad networks. Its bet is that enough people care about privacy to make a dent in a market dominated by giants.
Saved answer · last researched 15 Nov 2026