Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the questions teams ask most often when they're evaluating offline and air-gapped AI for their organization. For deeper background, see our pages on Offline AI, Air-Gapped AI, Edge AI, Local LLM, and Manufacturing AI.
What is Offline AI?
Offline AI is artificial intelligence that runs entirely on local hardware, with no dependency on cloud services or internet connectivity. The model, the data the model works with, and the compute that runs it all live inside the customer's network. Nothing is sent to a third-party API, and nothing is stored outside the perimeter the customer controls.
Offline AI is most often chosen by organizations that handle sensitive data, operate in disconnected environments, or want predictable costs. For a longer overview, see Offline AI.
Can AI run without internet access?
Yes. Modern AI models — including large language models, vision models, and OCR engines — can run entirely on local hardware. The same model that powers a cloud product can be deployed on a server, workstation, or appliance inside a customer's network.
Silode devices are designed exactly for this. They ship with the model, runtime, and configuration tools already on the device, so there is no first-run cloud check, no required outbound connection, and no telemetry leaving the network. The system behaves the same whether the building is online or not.
What is an Air-Gapped AI System?
An air-gapped AI system runs on a network that has no physical or wireless link to any external network. The internet is unreachable, public DNS resolution doesn't work, and any data movement happens through deliberate, controlled channels. Air-gapping is used in defense, intelligence, financial trading, critical infrastructure, and other environments where data cannot leave the perimeter under any circumstances.
Silode builds AI systems specifically for these environments. Updates happen through controlled media, telemetry stays local, and the device is designed to be installed and operated without an external dependency. For more detail, see Air-Gapped AI.
How does Silode connect to legacy hardware?
Silode devices connect using the standard interfaces existing equipment already exposes. That includes Ethernet, USB, RS-232 and RS-485 serial, file shares, common database protocols, and the industrial protocols used by PLCs, vision systems, and SCADA stacks. Silode does not require equipment vendors to add new APIs or expose proprietary interfaces.
In practice, this means a Silode device can sit next to a CNC machine, a document scanner, a database server, or a measurement system and exchange data without touching the underlying control logic. Customers keep the equipment they already have and gain AI capability on top of it.
Is my data ever sent to Silode?
No, not unless you explicitly choose to share it. By default, Silode devices keep all customer data — prompts, documents, results, logs — on the device itself. Customers can opt in to telemetry or support-related data sharing, but it's never automatic, and air-gapped deployments are configured with no outbound paths at all.
Where can I learn more or get a quote?
Email info@silode.com with a short description of the environment, the workflow, and the data involved. We'll match the request to the right Silode device and configuration and follow up with details.