Running LLMs in Intel Laptops

Running LLMs in Intel Laptops

AI (especially LLMs) are taking over the world right now. The pace of progress has been especially dizzying this year, with every month producing a new breakthrough in the technology (e.g Opus 4.6, OpenClaw). As with all technologies, it is also important to have a grasp of the basics. And what better way to learn the basics than trying to run an LLM in your computer!

We are all familiar with the popular AI tools (LLMs) like ChatGPT and Claude. These services are running on what is called frontier models, which are the best models that is available in the market right now. But these models are usually paid, either per token or through a usage quota. If you want have a “free” LLM, then you have to run your own model using your machine. For this, we need to use open source (or more accurately open weight) models. Fortunately, we have a wide selection of models: Continue Reading

The Year of Freedom

The Year of Freedom

I don’t do New Year’s resolutions. I believe that change should be done as soon as you decide to do it, not because of some date in the calendar. When I saw a video of Ramit Sethi on how he sets a theme at the start of the year, I was convinced that this is the way to do it.

Why is this different from setting up a New Year’s resolution? The traditional way makes you identify what you need to change in your life
(better diet, better sleep, financial recovery). In contrast, a theme sets the direction, or what to focus on. Instead of highlighting your shortcomings (binge eating, sleeping late, no financial plan), a theme allows you to both re-align your priorities, as well as double down on your strengths that point you in the direction that you want. Continue Reading

Tadaima

Tadaima

After 18 years, I was finally able to go back to Japan for a family trip. Back in 2006 and 2007, I was sent to Tokyo for a business trip to my company’s headquarters. Japan left a personal impact and since then it became one of my goals to return someday.

My wife, whom I didn’t know at that time, was also sent to Tokyo for a business trip around 2007. And same as me, she also wanted to go back as a tourist in the future. But after that time, life happened, we got married, had a kid, the pandemic came and travel became impossible for 2 years, and so on. I also didn’t want to travel with a small child: not just because it makes travel more challenging, but that I also wanted the child to be old enough to appreciate the new environment. But last year, conditions were just right to finally pull the trigger. Continue Reading

Racing To The End

Racing To The End

We love countdowns. The last seconds of the year are flashed in a big screen on a New Year’s Eve party. Where I live, we get daily reminders on how many days are left before Christmas Day. In the middle of the work week, we anticipate the coming weekend and silently hope that the days go faster.

But there is something that we do not realize. We are not just counting down towards some event, we are actually counting down towards our eventual demise. Continue Reading

Ripe Olive

Ripe Olive

One of the reasons why I like to study Stoicism is that its practitioners come from vastly different backgrounds. Slaves, businessmen, artists, soldiers, and even rulers, like the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius. This demonstrates that Stoicism is a practical philosophy, something that can be applied in life regardless of circumstances. This philosophy is not just for pondering ideas, it touches on the common aspects of humanity.

And what could be the greatest common ground for all of us, regardless of wealth, social standing, or fame, other than the reality of death. No one comes out of this earth alive. Death comes to us all; it is unfortunate that we don’t think about it as often as we should have. Continue Reading