When to rely on local offline weights versus frontier lab API calls.
Cloud models (Claude 3.5 Sonnet) utilize incredibly massive parameters—capable of insane logical leaps and coding generation. But they cost money per token, and require internet.
Local models (Meta Llama-3 8B) are small enough to fit on a Macbook Air. They are entirely free to run infinitely, and serve perfectly as localized editors, summarizers, and conversational peers.