No tokens. No spying. Just local power.
As someone who builds and tests LLM workflows daily, I hit a wall with cloud-based tools — lag, API limits, and constant privacy trade-offs. So I made the switch: LLMs on my own machine.
Here are 10 open-source projects I’ve personally explored (or bookmarked to test) that let you run full ChatGPT-like models offline — private, modifiable, and no cloud dependency.
🔥 My Top Picks
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Ollama — Think Docker, but for LLMs. Simple
run llama3, and you’re chatting. M2/M3 MacBook? It flies. - LM Studio — Beautiful desktop UI + drag & drop GGUF models. Great for docs, notes, and casual chat.
- Text Gen Web UI (oobabooga) — Power tool for devs. Plugins, long context, even voice input.
- PrivateGPT — Chat with your local PDFs. Fully offline RAG = zero data leakage.
- LocalAI — An OpenAI API clone... that runs on your machine. Plug it into existing apps.
Other Notables
- GPT4All — One-click GUI. Friendly starter for offline LLMs on any OS.
- Jan (gpt-terminal) — Mac-native UI with offline coding and chat.
- KoboldAI — Perfect if you’re into storytelling or roleplay.
- Chatbot UI + Ollama — A self-hosted ChatGPT clone — you control the backend.
- Gaia (AMD) — New player. Optimized for Ryzen AI, but works broadly. Cool agents baked in.
Why Run Locally?
- ✅ No API limits
- ✅ 100% private (no cloud = no leaks)
- ✅ Hackable + open source
- ✅ Way faster dev loop
- ✅ You own your AI stack
If you're curious: right now I bounce between LM Studio for daily use and Ollama + Open WebUI for dev tests and fast prototyping. It’s fun, fast, and mine.
🧪 Curious about performance?
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