LOCAL AI · NATIVE SPEED · PRIVATE BY DEFAULT
Build on-device AI into Expo apps.
Text generation, speech-to-text, embeddings, and RAG on the models your users' phones already ship with — Apple Foundation Models, ML Kit, SpeechAnalyzer — plus downloadable LiteRT-LM models when you need more. No API keys, no per-token bill, no cloud round-trip.
Why expo-ai-kit
Most AI features don't need a server — phones ship with capable models of their own now. expo-ai-kit is a small, typed API over the best of them, so your app can generate text, transcribe speech, and search its own data while offline, in private, and at no cost per request.
Use a development build
expo-ai-kit contains native code and does not run in Expo Go. Usenpx expo run:ios, npx expo run:android, or an EAS development build.
Choose the right model path
Apple Foundation Models
Use Apple's OS-provided language model with no model bundled into your app.
ML Kit
Prepare Google's OS-managed model on supported Android devices.
LiteRT-LM
Download curated Gemma, Qwen, and Phi models—or register your own.
Quick start
npx expo install expo-ai-kitimport {
isAvailable,
prepareBuiltInModel,
sendMessage,
} from 'expo-ai-kit';
if (!(await isAvailable())) {
throw new Error('On-device AI is unavailable');
}
await prepareBuiltInModel();
const { text } = await sendMessage([
{ role: 'user', content: 'Explain local AI in one sentence.' },
]);
console.log(text);A practical local AI toolkit
Generate
Stream text, preserve conversation context, and cancel work in progress.
Structure
Turn model output into validated objects with JSON Schema repair loops.
Act
Give local models typed tools and keep human approval in the loop.
Retrieve
Create embeddings and build private, on-device semantic search and RAG.
Transcribe
Turn speech into text — live from the microphone or from audio files.
Switch
Move between OS-native and downloadable models at runtime.
Integrate
Use the same local engine through the Vercel AI SDK provider.