BlackBird is an AI agent platform that runs entirely on your Mac. It allows you to build custom AI “agents” (think of them as specialized AI assistants) for different domains like law, tech, finance, etc., without relying on cloud servers​.

All AI processing – from answering questions to fine-tuning models – happens on your device, so your data stays private​.

With BlackBird, you can quickly set up an AI agent to, for example, help summarize legal documents, answer coding questions, analyze financial data, transcribe meetings, or assist with research – all in a few clicks and without needing extensive AI expertise​

BlackBird’s core technology (called LaserTune) even lets you train AI models on your own data locally, tailoring them to your needs without any cloud computing.​

You can download BlackBird from the official Decompute website (via the BlackBird Beta program link or the public download page provided). Once you have the installer (typically a .dmg file), open it and drag the BlackBird app into your Applications folder. On first launch, BlackBird will ask for permission to access your location – make sure to allow this (it’s needed for region compliance; see Location Policy below). If macOS shows a warning (e.g. “unidentified developer”), you can bypass this by right-clicking the app icon, selecting Open, and confirming you want to open it. After launching, BlackBird will guide you through an initial setup or onboarding process. This might include selecting or downloading an AI model for the first time and walking you through creating your first agent. The onboarding is designed to be user-friendly, so you can create a custom AI agent in just a few steps​.

BlackBird Beta 1.0 is currently available for macOS. It supports macOS 14 or later, and it’s tested on modern macOS versions. You can try older version, but we cannot guarantee it will work. We recommend running BlackBird on an Apple Silicon Mac (M1-M4 series) or a Mac with a capable GPU for the best performance, though it can fall back to CPU-only mode if needed. In fact, BlackBird’s LaserTune technology is optimized to work even on consumer hardware with minimal GPU memory​, so you don’t need a high-end machine to get started. That said, having at least 8 GB of RAM (16 GB+ preferred) will help for larger AI models. Ensure you have a few gigabytes of free disk space as well, since AI models and any fine-tuned data will be stored locally. (Note: A Windows version is in the works – Windows support is coming soon – but as of now, you’ll need a Mac to use BlackBird.)

BlackBird is designed to run offline. Once it’s installed and you have your AI model set up, you do not need internet for the core features – all inference (AI answering questions) and training happens on your machine​. This means you can use your custom AI agents anywhere, even with no Wi-Fi. However, there are a couple of cases where internet may be used:

• Initial setup/model download: If BlackBird needs to download an open-source model for you (e.g. pulling a model from an online repository), you’ll obviously need internet for that download. You can also load a model file manually if you already have one, to stay offline.

• Location verification: On first launch (and occasionally as needed), BlackBird checks your location to ensure you’re in a supported region. This might use an internet-assisted service to determine location (since most Macs don’t have GPS). It’s a quick check and minimal data usage.

Aside from those, all your queries, data, and interactions with agents do not require internet – you have an unlimited, offline AI that won’t stop working even if your connection does​.

BlackBird supports macOS 14 and later. It works on both Apple Silicon Macs (M1-M4 MacBook Air/Pro, Mac Mini, iMac, etc). Apple Silicon Macs are preferred for better speed (they have Apple’s Neural Engine and excellent CPU/MPS performance for AI), but Intel Macs with sufficient RAM or an eGPU can run BlackBird too. If you’re on an older macOS (pre-14.0), you’ll need to upgrade your OS to install BlackBird. For best results, use macOS 14 or 15. Also, keep your macOS updated if possible, as BlackBird may take advantage of the latest performance improvements in macOS (especially for machine learning libraries).

Currently, BlackBird is Mac-only. The Beta 1.0 is for macOS (with Windows support “coming soon” as the team has announced). The developers are actively working on a Windows version, and it’s expected in the near future. (LaserTune is built to work on both Mac and Windows environments​, so the Windows release is on the roadmap.) As for Linux or other platforms: there’s no official word yet. The focus is on Mac and Windows for now, given those cover the majority of users. If you’re interested in other platforms, keep an eye on Decompute’s announcements or join their community to express interest. For iPhone/iPad (iOS/iPadOS) – BlackBird is a desktop-class application and currently there’s no iOS version. The on-device AI approach could theoretically work on an iPad Pro, for example, but that’s not in Beta at this time. So, for now, plan to use BlackBird on a Mac, or on Windows when that version is released.

To help you explore the app, we offer a 25 MB file upload limit during the trial phase. After you sign in, your upload capacity increases to 75 MB. For users who need more, upgrading to the Pro plan removes all file size limits—giving you unlimited upload capacity and complete freedom to work with larger files.