A newer version of the Bluetooth radio protocol that is designed to be more power-efficient and more flexible.
Bluetooth LE was introduced with Bluetooth 4.0. Most phones that support Bluetooth 4.0 or higher support both Bluetooth LE and the original radio standard (BR/EDR, or Bluetooth Classic).
Bluetooth LE is referred to as a different "radio" compared to Bluetooth Classic, but it uses the same radio frequency band (2.4 GHz), and therefore the same antenna in a device that supports both radio standards.
Initially, Bluetooth LE was designed for very power-constrained devices such as standalone sensor and beacon devices with a small battery that might only be charged or replaced annually. It has since expanded to be used for a growing proportion of Bluetooth devices. With the introduction of LE Audio in 2020, Bluetooth LE will be the default Bluetooth radio standard for the majority of Bluetooth devices from 2021 onward.
See: LE Audio
While Classic Bluetooth is designed only for one-to-one (point-to-point) connections, Bluetooth LE also natively supports one-to-many (broadcast) and many-to-many (mesh) connections.