The Quiet Shift That Puts AI in Your Hands

You run a small business in Malaysia, and every headline about artificial intelligence seems to involve massive data centres, enterprise subscriptions, or chatbots that need a stable internet connection to think. So what does a Ukrainian software company and a US AI startup have to do with your workshop, your retail shop, or your logistics firm? More than you think. A recent partnership between MacPaw, the team behind CleanMyMac, and Liquid AI is pushing AI intelligence directly onto your phone, laptop, or tablet, and it opens up a different path for how SMEs can use AI without relying on the internet.

What Happened

MacPaw has partnered with Liquid AI to power its products with locally hosted AI models, according to TechCrunch. The company is also preparing its SetApp app store for AI apps with credit-based plans for users. MacPaw is currently working on its AI assistant Eney, and now plans to build a locally hosted version, for which it has roped in Liquid AI to develop an on-device inference system called Elix as well as a local memory system.

“Before training our models, we select an architecture that is different and tailored to the hardware. That allows us to really have the most efficient version of intelligence that runs directly on the device, with benefits like privacy and security,” Ramin Hasani, Liquid AI’s CEO, told TechCrunch.

MacPaw’s CEO Oleksandr Kosovan said locally hosted AI models will also give users the ability to run assistants and agentic workflows offline, as reported. Apple already provides its own local models to developers, but Liquid AI argues that its models focus on performance for different capabilities. The two companies plan a customization stack around their models, so that with user input, the models can use data and improve over time.

SetApp has over 150,000 subscribed users, and MacPaw plans to focus more on AI apps for the subscription-based store, according to TechCrunch. Once it locks in the local processing architecture, MacPaw wants to make the technology available to developers so they can use on-device inference with their apps. The platform will also provide access to other cloud models from companies like Google, acting as a one-stop shop for developers. MacPaw is already experimenting with credit-based usage plans, where users perform a certain number of AI operations based on credits and task complexity.

Why This Matters for Malaysian SMEs

For your business, the biggest issue with most AI tools is that they require your business data to leave your device. If you run a clinic, a legal firm, or an accounting practice in Kuala Lumpur, your client records are sensitive. Sending text or images to a cloud AI may raise compliance concerns under Malaysia’s Personal Data Protection Act. But with on-device inference, the model runs locally, as the MacPaw-Liquid AI partnership shows. That means your data never leaves the device, which simplifies privacy management and lowers your exposure if a cloud provider is compromised.

Another reason to pay attention: Malaysian internet isn’t always predictable. You have been in a meeting in a hotel in Damansara or a shophouse in Penang with spotty Wi-Fi. If your AI assistant requires a connection, it becomes useless at the worst moments. MacPaw’s plan to offer offline agents and agentic workflows directly addresses this. For a SME that uses customer support chatbots, inventory scanning, or invoice recognition, having AI work on-device means your operations continue even when the internet drops. It also reveals an opportunity: you can build apps for your employees or customers that are private and reliable, and differentiate yourself from competitors who depend on cloud services.

The Bigger Picture

Looking beyond this single partnership, the move signals that AI is becoming more decentralised. For SMEs, this levels the field. You don’t need to own a server farm to give your team an intelligent assistant. You can build on local model stacks that integrate with cloud options when needed, much like MacPaw plans to give developers access to both local inference and cloud models from companies like Google. The trend also encourages a new business model: SetApp is experimenting with credit-based AI operations, as TechCrunch noted. This could inspire Malaysian software providers to package AI capabilities in flexible, usage-based tiers rather than one-size-fits-all subscriptions.

For Malaysian SME owners, the lesson is simple: start paying attention to where AI runs, not just what it does. The MacPaw-Liquid AI deal shows that on-device intelligence is moving from occasional experiments to a platform feature. That is a quiet shift, but it could reshape how you serve your customers, protect their data, and keep your operations running in all conditions.

Key Takeaways for Your Business

• Assess your current AI tools: are they sending your business data to third-party servers? Look for on-device alternatives that keep data local.
• Identify offline bottlenecks: which tasks fail when your connection drops? Chatbots, document processing, and inventory checks are good candidates for local AI.
• Watch for new app marketplaces: if MacPaw opens its local AI stack to developers, SetApp may become a channel for SME-focused applications in Malaysia.
• Plan for hardware and skills: on-device AI requires devices with adequate processing power. Start small with one use case and build from there.

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