Agreed, GPU is the expensive route, especially when I was looking at external GPU solutions.

Using Qwen3:32b on a 32GB M1 Pro may not be "close to cloud capabilities" but it is more than powerful enough for me, and most importantly, local and private.

As a bonus, running Asahi Linux feels like I own my Personal Computer once again.

I agree with you (I have a 32G M2Pro) and I like to mix using local models running with Ollama and LM Studio with using gemini-cli (used to also occasionally use codex but I just cancelled my $20/month OpenAI subscription - I like their products but I don’t like their business model, so I lose out now on that option).

Running smaller models on Apple Silicon is kinder on the environment/energy use and has privacy benefits for corporate use.

Using a hybrid approach makes sense for many use cases. Everyone gets to make their own decisions; for me, I like to factor in externalities like social benefit, environment, and wanting the economy to do as well as it can in our new post-mono polar world.