Jan

What is Jan?

Jan is an open-source alternative to ChatGPT that lets you interact with AI directly on your own computer, completely offline. It is built to be highly customizable, so you can tailor it for secure, private chats. Everything you do — your conversations and settings — stays on your machine.

Development is fully open on GitHub, reflecting a commitment to open-source AI. Features include offline use, customizable AI assistants, compatibility with OpenAI’s API, and tools like global hotkeys and inline AI to streamline your work.

Since Jan is still in development, you may encounter occasional bugs. It also offers an API server at localhost:1337 that behaves like OpenAI’s API, making it easy to connect with compatible apps. Developers and curious users can check the project’s roadmap, changelog, and documentation to follow progress or contribute.

Who created Jan?

Jan was built by a team of AI researchers and engineers who also lead other open-source AI tools, including Cortex. The company behind Jan has a background in robotics and focuses on improving how humans and machines work together. It runs as a bootstrapped startup, funding itself through consulting and custom development while pursuing technical breakthroughs.

Jan’s core principles are user ownership, open-source development, and privacy by default, supported by an active community.

What is Jan used for?

• Interacting with AI offline on your computer
• Creating custom AI assistants for your tasks
• Keeping conversations and data private and secure
• Running AI models locally, with optional cloud-based processing
• Acting as a drop-in replacement for apps that use OpenAI’s API via its local server at localhost:1337
• Using global hotkeys and inline AI for faster workflows
• Customizing your experience with extensions
• Following transparent development on GitHub, including the roadmap, changelog, and documentation

Who is Jan for?

Jan suits AI researchers, engineers, developers, and enthusiasts who value privacy, open-source software, and local control over their AI tools.

Key takeaways

Jan combines offline capability, OpenAI API compatibility, and transparent open-source development in a desktop app. If privacy and data ownership matter to you, it’s worth trying — just keep in mind it’s still under active development.