22 ms·

For 99.99% of people, spending 15 grand on a Mac Studio just to run Qwen 3.8 locally is a non starter.

jmull 14d ago
It's not the M5 Ultra itself, but the M7s or M9s that will do the damage. 99% of people will use whatever AI is free. The sophisticated, heavy users that are willing and able to pay a lot of money the ones that will be interested in controlling their inference bills. Today, the sweet spot where an M5 Ultra makes sense is tiny. But we might expect that to grow a lot.
- BatFastard 14d ago
  Anthropic is reporting 100 Billion ARR. Even if you could get a frontier model, you would not be able to run it on any Mac. So speculating on what M7 or M9 will achieve in 5 years (if we even still exist) seems pointless.
  - sghiassy 14d ago
    Do you need a frontier model to write emails, check your calendar, search the web? I don’t think Apple is going to lie down and cede AI to the cloud.
    - geodel 14d ago
      > Do you need a frontier model to write emails, check your calendar, search the web? How about writing mail to President and senators on AI doomsday scenario if frontier labs do not pace themselves? That mini model on mac mini would scared to hell to do such thing. It need that rugged frontier model to speak truth to power.
    - BatFastard 14d ago
      True, but do you need a 10,000 dollar machine to do so? I would love to find an excuse to buy a 10,000 dollar machine! But I cant find one yet. My current cloud bill is in excess of 400 USD per month. Just can't achieve frontier model capabilities locally.
beastman82 14d ago
at 15 tok/s
sghiassy 14d ago
Yes, but in 7 years?
- whalesalad 14d ago
  In 7 years we will probably all be living under ground fighting skynet with plasma rifles made out of old microwave parts
  - fragmede 14d ago
    You will. Some of us are going to be already ground into dust that the microwave parts are made out of. Others will be locked into our communism cubes with our daily allotment of entertainment and sustinece. let out into the sunlight for only 30 minutes per day.
  - sghiassy 14d ago
    I’ve watched Terminator 2 extensively. I am prepared

jmull 14d ago

It's not the M5 Ultra itself, but the M7s or M9s that will do the damage. 99% of people will use whatever AI is free. The sophisticated, heavy users that are willing and able to pay a lot of money the ones that will be interested in controlling their inference bills. Today, the sweet spot where an M5 Ultra makes sense is tiny. But we might expect that to grow a lot.

BatFastard 14d ago
Anthropic is reporting 100 Billion ARR. Even if you could get a frontier model, you would not be able to run it on any Mac. So speculating on what M7 or M9 will achieve in 5 years (if we even still exist) seems pointless.
- sghiassy 14d ago
  Do you need a frontier model to write emails, check your calendar, search the web? I don’t think Apple is going to lie down and cede AI to the cloud.
  - geodel 14d ago
    > Do you need a frontier model to write emails, check your calendar, search the web? How about writing mail to President and senators on AI doomsday scenario if frontier labs do not pace themselves? That mini model on mac mini would scared to hell to do such thing. It need that rugged frontier model to speak truth to power.
  - BatFastard 14d ago
    True, but do you need a 10,000 dollar machine to do so? I would love to find an excuse to buy a 10,000 dollar machine! But I cant find one yet. My current cloud bill is in excess of 400 USD per month. Just can't achieve frontier model capabilities locally.

beastman82 14d ago

at 15 tok/s

sghiassy 14d ago

Yes, but in 7 years?

whalesalad 14d ago
In 7 years we will probably all be living under ground fighting skynet with plasma rifles made out of old microwave parts
- fragmede 14d ago
  You will. Some of us are going to be already ground into dust that the microwave parts are made out of. Others will be locked into our communism cubes with our daily allotment of entertainment and sustinece. let out into the sunlight for only 30 minutes per day.
- sghiassy 14d ago
  I’ve watched Terminator 2 extensively. I am prepared