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On-premise AI or cloud AI: how to decide
An AI assistant can run in a provider's cloud or on a server inside your organisation. Both work. The right choice depends on what your documents contain, the rules you work under and how you prefer to pay.
| On-premise (your own server) | Cloud service | |
|---|---|---|
| Where documents and questions go | Stay inside your building | Sent to the provider's servers, often outside Oman |
| Internet needed | No | Yes, all the time |
| Getting started | Weeks: a server is installed and connected | Days: accounts are switched on |
| How you pay | Server and licence, usually budgeted up front | Per user, per month |
| Who maintains it | The supplier, on your server | The provider, remotely |
| Best for | Sensitive, regulated or classified information | General work with no confidential data |
A general comparison. Individual products differ, so check the details of any offer.
Choose on-premise when
- Your documents include personal, financial, health, legal or classified information.
- A regulator, a client contract or your own policy requires data to stay in Oman.
- Some sites have weak or no internet.
- You want answers grounded in your own archive, including scanned Arabic paper, with the source shown.
Choose cloud when
- The work is general writing, translation or research with no confidential data.
- You need something running within days and have no server room.
- You are comfortable with processing outside Oman under the provider's terms.
Many organisations use both
A common pattern is a public cloud tool for general tasks, with a clear rule that confidential documents never go into it, and a private system such as Falaj for work on internal documents. Falaj runs on a server inside your organisation in Oman, works without internet, and is installed and supported by a team in Oman.
Common questions
Is on-premise AI as capable as cloud AI?
For answering questions from your own documents, yes. The largest cloud models are broader for general knowledge, but an on-premise system works from your files, shows its sources and keeps the data in your building.
What hardware does on-premise AI need?
A server sized to your number of users and documents, usually with a graphics card. We size it during the discovery meeting and include it in the written quote.
Can we start in the cloud and move later?
Yes, though moving means re-checking where data has already gone. Organisations with sensitive archives usually start on-premise with one department.
See it on documents like yours
We bring Falaj to your offices and run it on a sample of your own files, so you can judge the answers yourself.