What is Chatd used for?

Chatd is a desktop app for chatting with your own documents using a local language model, with Ollama bundled so no data leaves your computer. It is a good fit for asking questions about confidential files and trying local LLMs through a simple desktop interface.

Is Chatd open source?

Yes. Chatd is open source under the MIT licence. Its source code is on GitHub at BruceMacD/chatd and is written mainly in JavaScript.

Yes. Chatd is open source, so the software itself is free to use.

Can I self-host Chatd?

Yes. Chatd can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure; there is no official hosted version.

What is Chatd an alternative to?

Chatd is an open-source alternative to ChatGPT. Other open-source alternatives to ChatGPT include AnythingLLM, TextGen and Open WebUI.

Is Chatd actively maintained?

The most recent commit to Chatd was on 6 July 2024, and the latest release is v1.1.2, published on 6 July 2024. The project has 1.1k stars on GitHub.

Chatd: open-source alternative to ChatGPT

About Chatd

Chatd is an Electron-based desktop application that lets you ask questions about your documents using a large language model running on your own machine. Documents and conversations stay local rather than going to a cloud service, which makes it a privacy-oriented option for working with sensitive files.

What sets it apart from similar tools is that the local model runner comes packaged in. It uses Ollama under the hood and defaults to Mistral-7B; if an Ollama instance is already running, chatd detects and uses it, otherwise it starts and manages its own server. Getting started means downloading a release, unzipping it and running the executable. Advanced settings cover GPU support and choosing a custom model.

Chatd is MIT licensed, with builds distributed through its website and the GitHub releases page and packaging instructions for macOS and Windows. It suits individuals and small teams who want retrieval-augmented question answering over their files without sending anything to a hosted AI service.

Key features

Chat with documents using a local LLM
Bundled Ollama runner, nothing else to install
Reuses an existing local Ollama instance
Optional GPU support
Choice of custom models
Data stays on your computer

Good fit for

→Asking questions about confidential files
→Trying local LLMs through a simple desktop interface

Built with: JavaScript; Electron
Tags: llm; rag; ollama; local-ai; desktop; electron; privacy; document-chat; mistral

Chatd: questions and answers

What is Chatd used for?: Chatd is a desktop app for chatting with your own documents using a local language model, with Ollama bundled so no data leaves your computer. It is a good fit for asking questions about confidential files and trying local LLMs through a simple desktop interface.
Is Chatd open source?: Yes. Chatd is open source under the MIT licence. Its source code is on GitHub at BruceMacD/chatd and is written mainly in JavaScript.
Is Chatd free?: Yes. Chatd is open source, so the software itself is free to use.
Can I self-host Chatd?: Yes. Chatd can be self-hosted on your own server or infrastructure; there is no official hosted version.
What is Chatd an alternative to?: Chatd is an open-source alternative to ChatGPT. Other open-source alternatives to ChatGPT include AnythingLLM, TextGen and Open WebUI.
Is Chatd actively maintained?: The most recent commit to Chatd was on 6 July 2024, and the latest release is v1.1.2, published on 6 July 2024. The project has 1.1k stars on GitHub.