Free-tier AI kit
Own accounts only · no paid Vertex · bridges ChatGPT weekly reset (Thu)
Fastest — browser, zero install
#1 start here Google AI Studio (Gemini)
Free Gemini chat + API key you create yourself.
aistudio.google.com → Sign in with Google → Chat, or Get API key.
fast GroqCloud
Very fast free Llama / Mixtral / Gemma. Own API key.
console.groq.com → Sign up → API Keys → Playground.
many models OpenRouter (free tier models)
One key, many free models. Filter by price = $0.
openrouter.ai → Keys → Models → sort/filter free.
Optional — run models on your machine
local Ollama (Mac / Windows / Linux)
Fully offline after download. You own it.
- Install: ollama.com/download
- Terminal:
ollama run llama3.2 (or mistral, phi3, gemma2)
- Optional pretty UI: Open WebUI or LM Studio (point-and-click)
One-liner helper (Mac): download install-mac.sh then bash install-mac.sh
If you want a coding agent (still free keys)
- Cursor — free/hobby tier; paste your Gemini or OpenRouter key in Settings → Models
- Continue.dev — VS Code extension; same: your Groq/Gemini/OpenRouter key
- Aider — terminal pair programmer;
export GEMINI_API_KEY=... or Groq key
Suggested path for this week
- Today: AI Studio + Groq — chat in browser in under 5 minutes
- If you code: put your Gemini or Groq key into Cursor/Continue (never share the key)
- Optional: Ollama for offline / no rate-limit anxiety
- Thursday: ChatGPT cap resets; Vertex only if you choose to pay