# What is offline AI?

Offline AI works without an internet connection after models are downloaded — useful for travel, air-gapped networks, and privacy.

Offline AI is any AI system that keeps working when Wi‑Fi and cellular are off. After you download models and software once, inference happens locally — the same pattern Ollama documents for running without network access once models are pulled.

Common offline setups: Ollama + a quantized Llama model, the Jan desktop app (markets offline-first chat), or LM Studio with airplane-mode testing. Phones can run smaller models via dedicated offline chat apps built on on-device runtimes.

Offline does not mean zero setup — you still need storage and compatible hardware. It does mean no API keys, no data exfiltration, and no surprise outages when a vendor has downtime.



## Sources
1. [Ollama FAQ (GitHub)](https://github.com/ollama/ollama/blob/main/docs/faq.md)
2. [Ollama](https://ollama.com/)
3. [Jan — offline chat](https://jan.ai/)
4. [LM Studio](https://lmstudio.ai/)

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Page: https://localizedaiguide.com/q/what-is-offline-ai