Survey on Local vs Self-hosted LLMs and Privacy (Academic Research)

DeepakDenre
Mon, 13 Apr 2026 02:56:39 +0000

Hi everyone,

I am an MCA student currently working on a research paper exploring the differences between Local LLMs and Self-hosted LLM setups, with a focus on data privacy, control, and real-world usage patterns.

I have created a short anonymous survey that takes approximately 2 minutes to complete: AI Tools & Privacy — Survey for Self-Hosted + Online AI Users (Form B)

I am particularly interested in responses from people who have experience with:

Running LLMs locally (e.g., Ollama, GGUF-based models)

Self-hosting models or AI services

Privacy-conscious AI usage

No personal data is collected, and the responses will be used strictly for academic purposes.

I would also be happy to share a summary of the findings with the community once the research is complete.

Thank you for your time.