Opera lets users run AI locally, but only if they remember to opt in
A browser company claims to solve privacy concerns by letting users run AI locally, but the solution still requires users to choose to opt in.
The story
Opera introduces WebAI, a new standard allowing users to run AI models locally in their browser, with support for open-weight models like Google's Gemma and Apple's on-device AI.
Source: techcrunch.com
Our reading
Opera wants users to run AI locally, but only if they remember to opt in. It’s like telling people they can cook their own dinner, but only if they first agree to a 10-minute tutorial on how to use the stove.
Users who don’t opt in will keep sending their data to the cloud, just like always. The browser company’s privacy promise is a feature, not a default, which means the real default is still the cloud.
Opera’s new standard is a step toward local AI, but only for those who bother to click a checkbox. The rest of us are still cooking with the cloud.
