Retrofuturism in action: Engineer runs Meta’s Llama 2 AI on a 2005 PowerBook G4

Running generative AI typically requires modern, powerful hardware, but a software engineer has successfully demonstrated these models can operate on far more modest systems. Andrew Rossignol recently managed to run Meta’s Llama 2 large language model on a PowerBook G4 from 2005 – a device containing only a 1.5GHz PowerPC G4 processor and 1GB of RAM. This achievement highlights the potential for AI to become more accessible across a wider range of computing devices, including those considered obsolete by today’s standards.

How he did it: Rossignol successfully ported the open-source llama2.c project to run on the two-decade-old laptop hardware.

• He significantly improved performance by leveraging AltiVec, a PowerPC vector extension that helped accelerate the model’s inference capabilities.
• The full technical implementation details are available in Rossignol’s blog post, where he documents the entire process.

The broader context: This PowerBook experiment joins other examples of AI models running on older consumer electronics.

• Similar demonstrations have been achieved on discontinued gaming consoles like the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.
• These projects challenge assumptions about the minimum hardware requirements needed to run generative AI systems.

Why this matters: The ability to run AI on older hardware could democratize access to these technologies beyond those with the latest equipment.

• As optimization techniques improve, AI capabilities may become available to users with limited computing resources or in regions where the newest hardware is cost-prohibitive.
• These experiments help push the boundaries of what’s possible with AI deployment on resource-constrained devices.