Local AI · Topic hub
Ollama & LM Studio
The two runners most people start with — setup, model management and where each wins.
16 articles across guides, comparisons, tools
Guides10
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GuidesLocal LLMs on Apple Silicon: Unified Memory Wins
A 64GB MacBook loads models a 24GB RTX 4090 cannot touch. What unified memory buys you, where MLX still beats everything, and which stack to actually run.
GuidesLocal LLMs for Coding: What Actually Works (2026)
Which local coding models are real vs toys, wiring Ollama's OpenAI API into your editor, real latency numbers, and the privacy case for client code.
GuidesOllama Agent Mode (2026): What Typing 'ollama' Does Now
Ollama v0.32 turned the bare 'ollama' command into a local agent that codes, edits files and runs skills. What changed, how we use it, and how to opt out.
GuidesLM Studio Bionic: Local AI Agents That Touch Your Files
LM Studio shipped Bionic, a Mac app that turns open models into file-touching agents. What it does, what it can't, and whether it replaces your chat app.
GuidesBuild a Fully Offline Voice Assistant With Home Assistant
Faster-whisper, Piper, and Ollama wired into Home Assistant Assist, with real latency numbers for built-in intents, GPU tier and CPU-only Raspberry Pi hardware.
GuidesQwen3.6-27B Local Setup: A 27B Model That Beats a 397B One
Alibaba's Qwen3.6-27B fits on one RTX 4090 and edges its own 397B-parameter predecessor on coding benchmarks. Our Ollama setup, VRAM notes and first tokens/sec.
GuidesGemma 4 12B: Run Google's New Multimodal Model Locally
Google DeepMind's Gemma 4 12B runs text, image, audio and video natively on a 16GB machine. What's confirmed at launch, and the Ollama setup.
GuidesHow to Run Llama Locally: 3 Ways Ranked (2026)
Ollama's one command, LM Studio's GUI, or raw llama.cpp — three ways to run Llama locally, ranked from daily use, with the VRAM table per model size.
GuidesOllama Complete Guide (2026): Install to Daily Use
Everything we know from running Ollama for real work: install, picking models and quants, the API, context-length tuning, and the mistakes that waste VRAM.
GuidesThe 9 Best Local AI Tools We Actually Run (2026)
We run local AI daily on our own RTX 4080 rig. These are the 9 tools that survived — LLM runtimes, image and video pipelines — plus the 5 we cut and why.
Comparisons3
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ComparisonsLM Studio Bionic vs Ollama: Agent App or DIY Local Stack?
LM Studio's Bionic agent and Ollama solve different local AI problems. We compare agent features, GGUF and MLX engines, cloud spillover, and privacy controls.
ComparisonsOllama vs llama.cpp (2026): Which Local LLM Tool Wins?
We run both on our rig. Ollama wraps llama.cpp for one-command ease; llama.cpp trades that away for raw speed and control. When each earns its place.
ComparisonsOllama vs LM Studio (2026): Same-Hardware Verdict
We run both on the same 16GB RTX 4080. Where Ollama's one-command workflow wins, where LM Studio's GUI and offload sliders win, and where we keep both.
Tools3
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Toolsllama.cpp — Tool Hub: Facts, Setup & Our Verdict
Everything about llama.cpp in one place: what the engine does, GGUF basics, the server flags that matter, and when to drop down from Ollama.
ToolsOllama — Tool Hub: Facts, Best Tutorials & Verdict
Everything about Ollama in one place: what it does best, VRAM realities, its limits, the best video tutorials, and links to our tested guides.
ToolsLM Studio — Tool Hub: Facts, Tutorials & Verdict
Everything about LM Studio in one place: the desktop way to run LLMs locally, its VRAM-fit model browser, limits, best tutorials, and our tested guides.