DeepSeek delivers frontier-level reasoning and coding capabilities as a fully open-weight model. Most users never unlock its full potential because they only access it through a browser or the terminal.
Askimo App turns DeepSeek into a complete local AI workspace: persistent chat history, local file search (RAG), multi-step AI Plans, MCP tool integrations, and seamless switching between DeepSeek and cloud providers, all in one native desktop app.
DeepSeek is a family of high-performance open-weight AI models developed in China, known for exceptional reasoning, mathematics, and code generation benchmarks that rival top closed-source models at a fraction of the training cost. DeepSeek models are freely available and run locally through Ollama.
Developer
DeepSeek AI
License
MIT / DeepSeek License
Best For
Reasoning & coding
Askimo isn't a terminal wrapper. It's a full local AI workspace with DeepSeek as a first-class provider.
Built as a true desktop app for macOS, Windows, and Linux. Fast, responsive, and works fully offline with no browser or server required.
Seamless model selection, endpoint configuration, and switching. See the Ollama provider setup guide for full details.
Index your project files, PDFs, and documents with Apache Lucene + jvector. The model answers questions grounded in your own knowledge base.
Use the visual interface for daily work and the Askimo CLI for scripting and automation. Same provider config, seamless switching.
Chain multiple prompts into automated workflows (research, summarise, write) all in one click. No copy-pasting between windows.
All conversations and files stay on your device. No telemetry, no cloud sync, no data collection. Learn more about Askimo security.
Running DeepSeek through Askimo takes under 5 minutes.
Download and run Ollama on your machine. It handles model downloads and local serving automatically.
Run ollama pull deepseek-r1 (or your preferred DeepSeek variant) in your terminal.
Launch Askimo App and select Ollama as your provider. The default endpoint is http://localhost:11434.
Pick DeepSeek from the model list. Chat, index your documents for RAG, or build an AI Plan to automate multi-step reasoning tasks.
CLI example:
askimo --provider ollama --model deepseek-r1 -p "Solve this step by step" A fair feature comparison of the three most common ways to run DeepSeek locally in 2026.
| Feature | Askimo App | Ollama CLI | Open WebUI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Visual chat interface | |||
| RAG (chat with your own files) | |||
| Multi-provider support (Ollama + cloud) | |||
| Conversation history and search | |||
| Open source (OSI-approved license) | |||
| Run models fully locally (100% private) | |||
| Native desktop app (no server or browser) | |||
| Works fully offline (no server process) | |||
| CLI interface for scripting | |||
| Local code block execution (Python, Bash) | |||
| MCP tools (file, git, web, APIs) | Partial | ||
| AI Plans (chained multi-step prompts) | |||
| Server-side pipelines / automation | Team edition (coming soon) | ||
| Multi-user / team features | Team edition (coming soon) | ||
| Web browser access (no app install) |
checkmark = included · x = not available · text = partial support. Based on publicly documented features as of 2026. Open WebUI uses a proprietary license (not OSI open source). Ollama CLI is open source (MIT).
Real workflows that benefit from running DeepSeek in a full desktop workspace.
DeepSeek's coding performance rivals GPT‑5. With Askimo's code block execution, you can generate, review, and run code locally in a single flow.
Chain DeepSeek's step-by-step reasoning with AI Plans to break a complex problem into stages and let DeepSeek work through each automatically.
DeepSeek runs 100% locally via Ollama. Legal documents, financial analysis, proprietary code. Nothing ever leaves your machine.
Common questions about running DeepSeek locally with a desktop GUI.
Askimo App is the most full-featured desktop client for DeepSeek in 2026. It provides a native app for macOS, Windows, and Linux with local RAG, MCP tools, AI Plans for multi-step reasoning workflows, persistent chat history, and multi-provider switching, while keeping your data completely offline.
Install Ollama (pull a DeepSeek model with one command) and Askimo App (the visual interface). Askimo automatically detects your running Ollama instance and lists available models. You can then chat, index files, and build workflows entirely through the GUI.
When you run DeepSeek through Ollama locally, the model runs entirely on your machine with no external connections. Askimo adds an additional privacy layer - no telemetry, no cloud sync, no data collection. All conversations and indexed files stay on your device.
DeepSeek generally outperforms Llama on mathematical reasoning and complex coding tasks. Llama tends to have stronger general conversational ability and a larger support community. The good news: with Askimo you can run both through Ollama and switch between them per-conversation to use each model for what it does best.
Yes. Askimo's built-in RAG indexes your local documents, PDFs, and code using Apache Lucene and jvector. When you ask DeepSeek a question, it retrieves the most relevant context from your files and uses it to generate grounded, accurate answers, entirely offline.
Free • Open Source • Privacy-First • Works Offline