Explainer · 04
Who actually needs one?
Most people don't need a private AI machine — cloud AI is excellent and cheap. The people who do tend to have one thing in common: their work comes with an obligation to keep things private, and that obligation doesn't bend for convenience.
Who it's usually for
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Attorneys
Privileged documents and client confidences, with professional duties about where that information goes.
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Therapists and clinicians
Session notes and health information that patients trusted you with.
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Accountants and financial advisors
Tax returns, statements and account details — especially in the middle of the season.
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Founders and small teams
Unreleased products, investor material and plans a competitor would love to read.
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Families
People who would simply rather their private life didn't sit on a company's servers.
Who it probably isn't for
- Occasional users. If you ask AI a few questions a week, a subscription is cheaper and more capable.
- People whose work isn't sensitive. If nothing you'd type is confidential, the main reason to go local disappears.
- Anyone who needs the very top model. If your work depends on frontier-level reasoning, cloud is still ahead.
Three questions that decide it
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Is what you'd type confidential?
Not embarrassing — confidential, with a real obligation or a real cost if it got out.
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How often would you use it?
Daily use, ideally by more than one person, is where a machine earns its keep.
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Is your budget at least $2,500?
That's where builds start. Below it, a machine good enough to be worth owning isn't realistic yet.
Our 60-second fit check asks about exactly these and gives you a straight answer.