Elephas

Offline AI Mode

Run language models locally on your Mac with no internet connection. Complete privacy with Apple Silicon.

Complete privacy with local models

Offline AI mode runs a language model directly on your Mac. Your documents, your questions, and the AI responses all stay on your device. No internet connection is required after the model is downloaded.

Requirements

  • Apple Silicon Mac (M1, M2, M3, M4, or later)
  • At least 8 GB of unified memory (16 GB recommended for larger models)
  • 4 GB of free storage for the default model

Setting up offline AI

  1. Open Elephas Settings
  2. Go to the AI Provider tab
  3. Select Offline AI
  4. Choose a model size. Smaller models are faster; larger models give better answers
  5. Click Download. The model downloads once and is stored locally

When to use offline AI

  • Working with confidential or sensitive documents
  • No internet access available
  • You want zero data transmission to external services
  • Testing or evaluating Elephas without connecting to any API

Tradeoffs

Local models are smaller than cloud models and may produce less detailed answers for complex questions. For most document Q&A tasks, the quality is sufficient. You can switch between offline and cloud modes at any time to compare results.

Related articles

Privacy & Data ProtectionHow Your Data Is StoredYour documents are indexed and stored entirely on your Mac. Learn exactly how Elephas keeps your data private and where it lives.Privacy & Data ProtectionHow Elephas Compares on PrivacyA concrete comparison of the Elephas privacy model vs ChatGPT, Claude, and other generic AI assistants.SettingsAI Provider ConfigurationStep-by-step setup for OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, Ollama, and other AI providers in Elephas. Switch between Offline, Cloud, and Bring Your Own Key modes.