Brave Software, Inc.

Brave Software builds the eponymous, Chromium-based browser that blocks ads and trackers by default, along with Brave Search, an independent search engine with its own web index rather than a licensed third-party one. Brave Search also offers AI-powered direct answers and can be set as the default search engine in any browser, not just Brave itself.

For developers, the company offers the Brave Search API, which lets the search functionality be integrated into custom applications. The official Brave Search MCP server also makes this API accessible to AI agents, letting an agent retrieve structured web search results directly.

The business model combines free core products with paid add-ons such as Brave Firewall + VPN and Brave Talk Premium. A key differentiator is the optional Brave Rewards program: users can view privacy-preserving ads and earn the Basic Attention Token (BAT) in return, which they can pass on to content creators or hold via the built-in Brave Wallet.

Brave deliberately positions itself as a counter-model to the data practices of large tech companies, emphasizing that users control their own attention and data instead of becoming the product themselves.

The Basic Attention Token has existed since 2017 as one of the early examples of tying a cryptocurrency to a concrete product rather than pure speculation, even though the token's price and usage have fluctuated significantly since then.