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mere.run

mere.run is a local AI runtime for developers and creators. Use its command-line interface (CLI) to generate media, run language models, and analyze images or geospatial data. You can also train adapters, evaluate models, serve an OpenAI-compatible API, and run portable workflow graphs.

Apple Silicon macOS is the primary platform. Headless Linux CUDA packages are also available. The macOS Studio app uses the same CLI, model store, and run history. The iOS client connects to your machines and offers experimental image and chat inference on supported iPhones.

The demonstration shows a local terminal session on an M4 Max. The workflows include chat, image generation, grounding, 3D reconstruction, sound, speech, video, API serving, and a workflow graph.

Start here

Install the CLI before running the examples. To choose a guided agent setup or a manual setup path, run:

mere.run setup

Before downloading models, check your installed version, the machine's model recommendations, and the offline guides:

mere.run --version
mere.run model capabilities --recommended
mere.run guide --list

For every public command and subcommand, see the complete command reference. Repository tests check its generated tree against the CLI. For flags in your installed version, run mere.run COMMAND --help. Replace COMMAND with a command path, such as image generate.

To generate your first image:

1. Review the model download plan:

   mere.run model pull image-zimage-nano --preflight --json
   

2. Download the model:

   mere.run model pull image-zimage-nano
   

3. Generate mug.png in your working directory:

   mere.run image generate \
     --model image-zimage-nano \
     --prompt "a ceramic mug in soft morning light" \
     --output ./mug.png
   

Model sizes, memory requirements, and licenses vary. Before downloading a model, review its catalog entry and run a pull preflight. After installation, mere.run model info MODEL_ID reports the model's manifest and validation status. Replace MODEL_ID with its catalog ID. Local inference doesn't require a hosted inference service after the models are installed.

What you can do

Use the following table to choose a workflow. Each guide lists model IDs, prerequisites, examples, and limits. Available inputs and controls depend on the selected model.

Some workflows use low-rank adaptation (LoRA) to train small adapters instead of updating all model weights.

Geospatial commands accept prepared tensors. Your workflow remains responsible for raster acquisition, reprojection, tiling, georeferencing, and evidence review. Some checkpoints require the documented conversion step before native inference. Predictions remain candidates for review.

The vision track-live command records a camera clip before tracking it. It doesn't run live frame-by-frame inference. Evaluation pack validation and promotion receipts verify the declared pack and report checks. They don't establish general model quality or operational approval.

For generated examples, see the showcase. Runtime support doesn't grant permission to use or redistribute a checkpoint. Review the model sources and licenses for those terms.

Example workflows

These examples use the installed CLI. From a source checkout, replace mere.run with swift run mere.run. Supply your own input files, such as reference.png. Model pulls download weights, and generation commands write the named outputs.

Chat locally

To download the Gemma model and stream a response:

1. Install the model:

   mere.run model pull text-chat-gemma4-12b-4bit
   

2. Send a prompt:

   mere.run text chat \
     --model text-chat-gemma4-12b-4bit \
     --stream \
     --prompt "Explain unified memory for local inference."
   

The response appears in the terminal. To connect an agent, run mere.run agent onboard. For Pi installation, other agent clients, and tool permissions, see the agent guide.

Edit an image with SenseNova U1.5

Place an input image named reference.png in your working directory, then follow these steps:

1. Install the model:

   mere.run model pull image-sensenova-u1-5-8b-mot
   

2. Generate an edited image named sensenova-edit.png:

   mere.run image generate \
     --model image-sensenova-u1-5-8b-mot \
     --input ./reference.png \
     --prompt "Turn this reference into a cinematic rainy-night scene" \
     --output ./sensenova-edit.png
   

For multiple references, structured prompts, Krea and Klein LoRA training, and 3D reconstruction, see the image guide.

Compose a song with MiniMax Music 3

This workflow uses a chat model to plan the song and a music model to generate the audio. First, install Gemma as described in Chat locally. Review the music model's terms and memory requirements before downloading it.

1. Install MiniMax Music 3 after accepting its terms:

   mere.run model pull music-minimax-music3 --accept-license-terms
   

2. Compose and generate song.wav:

   mere.run music generate \
     "slow-burn dream pop about leaving a familiar city and finding home" \
     --model music-minimax-music3 \
     --compose \
     --composer-model text-chat-gemma4-12b-4bit \
     --require-composer-installed \
     --duration 180 \
     --lyrics-preflight strict \
     --performance-mode q8-lm \
     --sampling-tier fast \
     --output ./song.wav
   

The command also saves composition metadata. The --require-composer-installed option prevents an implicit composer download, and --lyrics-preflight strict enables strict lyric-duration checks. The q8-lm mode quantizes the global language model while retaining the residual-depth decoder in BF16.

For supplied lyrics, ACE-Step covers, stem separation, MIDI transcription, and realtime performance, see the music guide.

Generate synchronized video and audio

Review the LTX model's terms and memory requirements before downloading it. Then follow these steps:

1. Install the complete distilled bundle after accepting its terms:

   mere.run model pull video-ltx25-distilled-bf16 --accept-license-terms
   

2. Generate an MP4 file with video and audio:

   mere.run video generate \
     "a small red robot walks across a wooden table, tiny mechanical footsteps" \
     --model video-ltx25-distilled-bf16 \
     --quality final \
     --output-mode audio-video \
     --fps 24 \
     --output ./robot.mp4
   

The bundle uses BF16 weights for the video pipeline and a Q4 text encoder. For the checksum-pinned MiniMax-H3 LightX2V 8-step workflow, MiniMax-H3 references, long-form generation, the full LTX pipeline, source audio, and SCAIL subject animation, see the video guide.

Serve the local API

Install Gemma as described in Chat locally before starting the server. The following procedure uses a loopback address, which accepts connections from the serving machine:

1. Inspect the serving plan without starting the server:

   mere.run api serve \
     --engine text-chat-gemma4 \
     --model text-chat-gemma4-12b-4bit \
     --preflight --json
   

2. Start the server:

   mere.run api serve \
     --engine text-chat-gemma4 \
     --model text-chat-gemma4-12b-4bit
   

3. In another terminal, send a chat request:

   curl http://127.0.0.1:8080/v1/chat/completions \
     -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
     --data '{
       "model": "text-chat-gemma4-12b-4bit",
       "messages": [{
         "role": "user",
         "content": "Explain local inference in one sentence."
       }]
     }'
   

The server returns a JSON response containing the model's answer. To stop the server, press Control+C in its terminal.

When their models are installed, the server also exposes embeddings, image generation and editing, speech, and native vision routes. The /v1/models endpoint reports capabilities, tool support, input modalities, and active limits. For authentication, model residency, and batching, see the API guide. For a chat interface, see the Open WebUI setup guide.

Apps and execution across machines

Choose an interface based on where you want to create and run work:

Local iPhone models depend on device memory. Simulator builds don't establish physical-device inference or lifecycle behavior. Graph Studio also has separate runtime and file-format versions: Graph v2 uses schema_version: 1 workflow files.

The separate Relay and Node project manages fleet hosts. Official plugins add companion workflows and typed graph providers outside the inference process. To inspect an available plugin without installing it, run:

mere.run plugin list
mere.run plugin info mere-vfx-tools

Relay and Node source lives in sawfwair/relay-mere-run. Plugin contracts and source live in mere-run-plugins. This repository provides the local runtime and clients, not a hosted inference backend. Remote execution sends work to the machine or fleet you select. Local execution keeps the work on your device.

Model storage

The default macOS model store is ~/Library/Application Support/MereRun/models. To select a different writable store, set MERERUN_MODELS_DIR or pass --models-root. For example, this command lists models in a store on an external volume:

mere.run --models-root /Volumes/Models/mere-run model list

To register models already organized as MODEL_ROOT/MODEL_ID, add their root with model location add. This example uses /Volumes/Models as MODEL_ROOT:

mere.run model location add /Volumes/Models
mere.run model location list

The registration adds a read-only search root. Model pulls continue to write to the primary store. An explicit store override doesn't include registered roots.

To inspect disk usage and preview cache cleanup without deleting files, run:

mere.run model storage
mere.run model gc

The model gc command only prints a plan unless you pass --force. The model remove command reclaims backing files only when no other model link uses them. Its --keep-cache option retains those files.

Model pulls use a separate Hugging Face snapshot cache. To choose its location, set MERERUN_HUB_CACHE or pass --cache-dir to model pull. Keep an external cache volume connected while using models that link to its files. For resolution order and cache details, see model management and configuration.

Automation and command discovery

For agents, scripts, and other clients, inspect the capability metadata and command guides:

mere.run catalog --json
mere.run catalog resolve --json -- video generate "a wave" --model video-ltx25-full-bf16
mere.run guide video generate
mere.run video --help

The catalog declares, for each model-loading command, the runtime families that run it and which options each family uses. Every command line is checked against it before anything loads: an option the selected model refuses stops the run with one message that names the models that take it, and an option the model accepts but never reads prints a warning that it has no effect. catalog resolve reports that decision, with the family and model the command would run, without loading anything.

On commands that support preflight, --preflight --json reports a plan before loading a model or writing output. The --progress-json option provides structured progress on supported commands. Check the command's help for available options.

Portable workflows preserve immutable plans, checksums, events, and run directories. To inspect or retrieve work, use run list, run inspect, run watch, and run fetch.

Releases

For version-specific features, fixes, and qualification results, see the project changelog. The GitHub releases page lists the published macOS and Linux artifacts for each release. To compare an installed CLI with a release, run mere.run --version.

Install or build

Choose the installation instructions for your platform. For workflows that use FFmpeg, make ffmpeg and ffprobe available on PATH. The MERERUN_FFMPEG and MERERUN_FFPROBE variables accept absolute paths to those executables.

Install on macOS

Use an Apple Silicon Mac with macOS 15 or later:

1. Download the signed disk image from the release downloads.
2. Open the disk image.
3. Drag MereRun.app to the Applications folder.
4. In the app's Settings, install the optional mere.run terminal command. You can also install the use-mere-run skill there.

The app runs its bundled CLI even if you don't install the terminal command. For a terminal-only installation, run the installer after mounting the disk image:

cd /Volumes/mere.run/.mere-run
./install.sh

The installer places the CLI and its runtime assets in /usr/local/bin. It uses sudo only if the destination requires it. For app integrations, see the preview and Library import deep links and the Raycast integration.

Install on Linux

Linux packages contain the headless CLI and runtime assets, not macOS Studio. Published Linux CUDA artifacts include x86_64 tarballs and Debian packages. Hosted CPU tests and release-hardware checks don't establish every model's compatibility on every Linux host.

For dependencies, CUDA setup, packaging, and validation limits, see the Linux quickstart.

Build from source

The package uses Swift tools 6.0 and declares macOS 15 and iOS 18 platforms. For development on Apple Silicon macOS:

1. Install the validation tools:

   brew install swiftlint ripgrep
   

2. From the repository root, build the package:

   swift build
   

3. Run the tests:

   swift test
   

4. Inspect the CLI:

   swift run mere.run --help
   

To build and open the optional macOS app, run:

app_path="$(./scripts/build_mere_run_app.sh debug)"
open "$app_path"

Before opening a pull request, run ./scripts/check.sh. To add runtime smoke tests, set MERERUN_RUN_E2E=core or MERERUN_RUN_E2E=installed. Installed-model checks require the relevant assets and hardware.

To build the documentation, use Node.js 20 or later and the pnpm version pinned in package.json:

pnpm install --frozen-lockfile
bash ./scripts/check-docs-examples.sh
pnpm docs:build

For contribution requirements and platform-specific work, see contributing, testing, and the iOS build instructions.

Security defaults

The default configuration requires explicit opt-in for higher-risk behavior:

• API serving binds to loopback by default. Other addresses require MERERUN_API_KEY or --api-key. Configure authentication and rate limits before exposing the server. Use the environment variable to keep the key out of process arguments.
• Chat tools require interactive approval unless non-shell tools are explicitly approved for automatic execution. Shell execution is off by default and still requires interactive approval when enabled. File writes stay in the tool sandbox unless absolute paths are explicitly permitted.
• The server operator controls API LoRA selection. Requests can't supply adapter paths. Remote model and adapter downloads reject plaintext HTTP except for loopback and local development.
• Model licenses are separate from the runtime license. Before passing --accept-license-terms or its alias --accept-model-license, review the model's terms. Some models restrict commercial use or particular applications.
• External evaluation scorers require --allow-external-scorer. Before authorizing a scorer executable, validate its pack and review the dry-run plan.

For the complete policies, see the security policy and the API guide.

Repository and documentation

These are the main entry points into the implementation, tests, and documentation. Sources/ holds about thirty library targets in all; the repository tour names every one of them and the source layout reference gives each a purpose.

For an introduction to the repository, start with the documentation hub, repository tour, or architecture map. For model-specific instructions, use the offline cookbooks packaged in mere.run guide.

Acknowledgments

The Python MLX community's reference implementations informed this Swift runtime. These projects shaped model loading, inference, media generation, and command design:

• ml-explore/mlx-lm: Language model inference on MLX, including chat and code workflows.
• Blaizzy/mlx-vlm: Vision-language models, including captioning, text recognition, and image inspection.
• Blaizzy/mlx-audio: Speech synthesis, recognition, codecs, and voice profiles.
• filipstrand/mflux: Image-generation reference work for Z-Image and FLUX models, including model loading, sampling, and image decoding.

For attribution and license terms for bundled third-party runtime artifacts, see third-party notices.