---
title: "Is local AI private? Does my data leave my network?"
description: "When the model runs on your own hardware, your prompts, files and outputs stay on your machines. Nothing is sent to an AI provider, so there is no third party that can log, retain or train on your data."
url: https://exolabs.net/faq/is-local-ai-private/
updated: 2026-10-26
---

# Is local AI private? Does my data leave my network?

When the model runs on your own hardware, your prompts, files and outputs stay on your machines. Nothing is sent to an AI provider, so there is no third party that can log, retain or train on your data.

Privacy then depends on your own setup: who can reach the API, what is logged, and whether any connected tools (web search, plugins, telemetry) call outside services.

Put the inference API behind your network’s access controls. Local servers often have no authentication by default.

**Where exo fits:** exo runs inference entirely on your devices. Models are downloaded once from Hugging Face, and offline mode stops even that.

Sources:
- [exo on GitHub (README)](https://github.com/exo-explore/exo)

Page: https://exolabs.net/faq/is-local-ai-private/ · Updated 2026-10-26 · Deployments: https://exolabs.net/#business (sales@exolabs.net)