Escape AI can connect to a local Ollama install so Ask, Plan, and text-based Edit run against a model on your own hardware instead of a cloud API — no per-request cost, and nothing sent off your machine for those requests. Here's exactly what that covers, what still uses a cloud model, and how to turn it on.
What "local" actually means here
Local means the model itself runs on hardware you control — your laptop, workstation, or a server you operate — via Ollama. Escape AI never assumes a fixed model name: it asks your Ollama install which models are actually pulled and lists exactly those, so the picker always reflects what you really have installed, not a hardcoded suggestion.
What runs locally, and what doesn't
Ask mode and Plan mode both work fully against a local model — plain chat and structured multi-step plans don't need function-calling, so a local model handles them the same way a cloud model would. Text-based Edit (asking for a complete rewritten file, without tool calls) also works locally.
Agent mode — the real tool-calling loop that reads files, applies diffs, and runs terminal commands — stays on a cloud model. Reliable function-calling (the model correctly calling a tool instead of just describing what it would do) is inconsistent enough across local and non-OpenAI models that this app doesn't route that specific loop through anything but a proven tool-calling model, regardless of which model you've picked elsewhere in the composer.
Setting it up
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Install Ollama and pull a model. Install from ollama.com, then pull a coding-capable model, e.g.
ollama pull qwen2.5-coder. Any model you've pulled shows up automatically in the picker. -
Point Escape AI at it. Defaults to
http://localhost:11434(Ollama's own default). - Pick it from the model picker. A "Local" section lists your real, discovered Ollama models.
When to reach for a cloud model instead
- Agent mode's real tool-calling loop — always cloud, by design.
- When your local hardware can't comfortably run a large enough model for the task.
- When you're already paying for a cloud plan and prefer its speed/quality trade-off for everyday use.
Try it: escape-ai.org — free to start, no card required.
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