What is a private AI box?

A private AI computer goes by many names. You may see it called an AI box, an AI server, an AI workstation, on-premise AI or a local LLM. Here is what the common names mean and what they have in common.

The names you will see

• AI box or AI boxes. A computer in your office, often in a case on a desk or in a cupboard, that runs AI software for your team. This is the casual name for what we build.
• Private AI, or “private ChatGPT”. An AI assistant where your documents stay with you. “Private ChatGPT” is a common nickname, but it is not ChatGPT. Our computers run open-source models and do the same kind of job: you ask in plain English and it answers, drafts and summarises.
• Local AI, on-premise AI or on-prem AI. The AI runs on your own premises instead of in a provider's data centre. See what is a local AI.
• AI server or AI workstation. The same idea. “Server” usually means a computer several people share over the network, and “workstation” one that a person sits at. Ours is shared: your team opens it in a web browser on their own computers.
• Self-hosted AI. You host the AI yourself, which is what you do with any of the above.
• Local LLM. An LLM, or large language model, is the engine behind AI chat assistants. A local LLM is one that runs on your own hardware.
• AI PC. Often means an ordinary laptop with AI features. A private AI computer for an office is a much more powerful machine with a strong graphics card.

What they have in common

Whatever it is called, a private AI computer has three parts: a computer with a powerful graphics card, an open-source AI model, and an app that lets staff ask questions of your own files from a browser. Ours uses AnythingLLM, an open-source app, and we set it all up before handover. See how it works.

Not every “AI box” is the same

The name is also used for other things, such as small devices that analyse video from cameras, consumer gadgets and mini computers that only run small models. If you want to ask questions of your own documents, check these before you buy:

• Graphics card memory. It decides how large a model the computer can run and how many people it can serve at once. Our builds show it for each tier.
• Which model it runs, and whether you can see it working on your own documents. You can try ours.
• Who sets it up and looks after it, and what happens if something breaks.
• The full price, not only the headline one.

Our buying checklist has ten questions to ask any supplier, including us.

What ours are

We build private AI computers for offices in Sydney, mainly on the North Shore and in the CBD. Prices start from $6,400 including GST for the Standard build, and every build is quoted in writing. There is no monthly subscription for the AI. To compare with monthly plans, try the cost calculator, or read private AI vs ChatGPT.