How to Replace Siri with a Free Local Model

This guide shows you how to download a free AI model to your iPhone and connect it to the Action Button so it works like a voice assistant. After setup, the model runs locally, so you can use it without an internet connection and without sending private prompts to a cloud service. The model download can take a few minutes and requires several gigabytes of storage.

• iPhone users with an Action Button who want a better assistant shortcut than Siri
• Privacy-focused users who want more AI tasks to run on-device
• People curious about local AI who want an easy first model to test
• Anyone who wants a quick voice assistant for explaining concepts, translating text, or working through small tasks

You will turn your iPhone’s Action Button into a shortcut for a local AI assistant that can run on your phone without an internet or cellular connection after the initial model downloads are complete.

• A downloaded local AI model in Locally AI
• An Action Button shortcut set to Locally AI Voice Mode
• A local voice assistant you can test with practical prompts

• An iPhone with an Action Button, such as iPhone 15 or newer
• The Locally AI app
• 3+ gigabytes of storage space
• Wi‑Fi for the initial model downloads

• Once the newest Gemma model is working, try downloading a bigger model and running the same prompts through both. Compare speed, storage use, answer accuracy, and which one sounds better out loud so you can find the model that is useful enough, fast enough, and private enough for your phone assistant tasks.