Perplexity Computer can run fully local on a Mac

Perplexity's 20 October 2026 post says Computer can run fully local on a Mac. The model, the harness, and the task stay on the machine. With permission, Computer works across local files and Mac apps, including Notes, Messages, Mail, and Numbers, without sending that personal data to the cloud.

Local Computer runs Qwen 3.6 or PPLX Pro, which Perplexity describes as a post-trained Qwen. It is available to Pro, Max, and Enterprise subscribers in the Perplexity Mac app on supported Apple silicon Macs. Perplexity recommends 36 GB of unified memory or more, and names machines such as the Mac mini with M6 and M5 Pro. Hybrid Compute is still there: the cloud handles research and reasoning, and a local model works on private files. You can allow the local orchestrator to call the cloud for current information, the browser, and connected apps. Perplexity says that orchestrator can call more than 15 frontier models. Code and tools run in a sandbox.

Who it's for: a Perplexity subscriber who wants a multi-step task on private Mac files to stay on the machine.

Fits: Best for Research stays Perplexity because of the sourced answer you can click. Local Computer is the private-file agent. The research verdict is unchanged.