Cloud inference
Also: hosted model
Running a model on a remote server. Your input travels to that server, so check its data terms before use.
Document stays on the machine. Only people with access to that machine can see it.
Document travels to the company’s servers. What happens next depends on your plan and settings: stored for a while, used for training, or deleted after the answer.
The app looks the same either way. The settings and the contract are where the difference lives.
The fuller definition
Cloud inference runs a model on a remote service accessed over a network.
Go deeper
- Your computer
- Model running on it
- Answer stays on it
Confidentiality depends on the machine and anything else connected to it.
- Your computer
- Provider's servers
- Storage, logs, possibly training
- Answer returned
Confidentiality depends on the contract, the account tier, and the settings in force.
Neither route is safe by default. The question is the same for both: who can see the material, where is it kept, and for how long.
A concrete example
A program sends an authorized request to a provider API and receives generated text.
The distinction that matters
The application, storage, and inference provider may be separate systems with different policies.
Related terms
API — Application Programming Interface
A doorway that lets one program talk to another. Apps use an API to send your request to the model and get the answer back.
Hardware & hostingLocal model
A model that runs on your own computer, so your documents never leave it.
Reliability & securityData residency
Which country the data is stored and processed in.
Where it is taught
Understand the hardware a local model needsSource and further reading
Hugging Face · Model inference and quantizationThe definition and example are written for this library. The link gives background, official documentation or legal authority as labelled. Legal scope depends on the jurisdiction and current text; product features depend on release and settings.