🔗 Running local LLMs: A practical guide

Why run a local LLM? In a recent article by Brian May, he delves into the benefits and challenges of running local LLMs, particularly in agentic applications where control flow matters. He explains scenarios when one might prefer local models over hosted services, primarily focusing on privacy concerns, sensitive expenses, and quality of responses. May reviews options for running these models, highlighting tools such as Ollama for its substantial library and ease of use, Llama.cpp for its versatility, and Llamafiles for their simplicity. He concludes with guidance on selecting the appropriate model based on parameters and quantization for optimized performance. With practical insights and nuanced analysis, the piece serves as a comprehensive resource for those considering the shift to local LLMs.