--- title: "gateway vs LocalAI" type: "comparison" canonical_url: "https://www.graphcanon.com/compare/missingstudio-gateway-vs-mudler-localai" tools: ["missingstudio-gateway", "mudler-localai"] --- # gateway vs LocalAI *GraphCanon updated Jul 11, 2026* ## Verdict Pick gateway when license: gateway is Apache-2.0, LocalAI is MIT; pick LocalAI when license: LocalAI is MIT, gateway is Apache-2.0. [gateway](https://www.missing.studio) reports 159 GitHub stars, 17 forks, and 10 open issues, last pushed Apr 8, 2024. [LocalAI](https://localai.io) has 47k stars, 4.2k forks, and 207 open issues, last pushed Jul 11, 2026. Figures are from public GitHub metadata via [gateway's repository](https://github.com/missingstudio/gateway) and [LocalAI's repository](https://github.com/mudler/LocalAI). | | [gateway](/tools/missingstudio-gateway.md) | [LocalAI](/tools/mudler-localai.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Tagline | [deprecated] AI Gateway - core infrastructure stack for building production-ready AI Applications | Run any model - LLMs, vision, voice, image, video - on any hardware. No GPU required. | | Stars | 159 | 47,477 | | Forks | 17 | 4,221 | | Open issues | 10 | 207 | | Language | Go | Go | | Adopt for | - | LocalAI is an open-source AI engine that supports the deployment of various models including LLMs and applications related to vision and audio across multiple hardware types without needing a GPU. | | Persona | - | - | | Runtime | - | - | | License | Apache-2.0 | MIT | | Categories | Computer Vision, Inference & Serving, LLM Frameworks | Computer Vision, LLM Frameworks, Speech & Audio | ## Trust and health _Sourced signals - not a safety guarantee. No winner column._ | | [gateway](/tools/missingstudio-gateway.md) | [LocalAI](/tools/mudler-localai.md) | | --- | --- | --- | | Maintenance | Dormant (18%) | Very active (96%) | | Days since push | 824d | 0d | | Open issues (now) | 10 | 207 | | Owner type | Organization | User | | Security scan | No lockfile | No MCP manifest | | Full report | [trust report](/tools/missingstudio-gateway/trust.md) | [trust report](/tools/mudler-localai/trust.md) | ## Decision facts: LocalAI - **Pricing:** freemium - As an open-source project under the MIT license, it is free to use and distribute. - **Adopt for:** LocalAI is an open-source AI engine that supports the deployment of various models including LLMs and applications related to vision and audio across multiple hardware types without needing a GPU. ## Choose when ### Choose gateway if… - License: gateway is Apache-2.0, LocalAI is MIT. - Tags unique to gateway: aistudio, gateway, generative-ai, grpc. - Also covers Inference & Serving. ### Choose LocalAI if… - License: LocalAI is MIT, gateway is Apache-2.0. - Pricing: As an open-source project under the MIT license, it is free to use and distribute.. - Tags unique to LocalAI: agents, audio-generation, decentralized, distributed. - Also covers Speech & Audio. - Use LocalAI when you need model flexibility, as it can run different types of models (LLMs, computer vision, speech & audio) on any type of hardware. ## When NOT to use gateway - Last GitHub push was 825 days ago (dormant maintenance, Apr 8, 2024). Validate activity before betting a new project on gateway. - Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. - LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. ## When NOT to use LocalAI - Avoid LocalAI if you need to leverage GPU-specific optimizations for performance acceleration as it promotes no-GPU usage, potentially sacrificing speed for accessibility. - Do not use LocalAI where specific language runtime environments are required that do not align with Go (the language in which LocalAI is written). ## Common questions ### What is the difference between gateway and LocalAI? gateway: [deprecated] AI Gateway - core infrastructure stack for building production-ready AI Applications. LocalAI: Run any model - LLMs, vision, voice, image, video - on any hardware. No GPU required.. See the comparison table for live GitHub stats and shared categories. ### When should I choose gateway over LocalAI? Choose gateway over LocalAI when License: gateway is Apache-2.0, LocalAI is MIT; Tags unique to gateway: aistudio, gateway, generative-ai, grpc; Also covers Inference & Serving. ### When should I choose LocalAI over gateway? Choose LocalAI over gateway when License: LocalAI is MIT, gateway is Apache-2.0; Pricing: As an open-source project under the MIT license, it is free to use and distribute.; Tags unique to LocalAI: agents, audio-generation, decentralized, distributed; Also covers Speech & Audio; Use LocalAI when you need model flexibility, as it can run different types of models (LLMs, computer vision, speech & audio) on any type of hardware. ### When should I avoid gateway? Last GitHub push was 825 days ago (dormant maintenance, Apr 8, 2024). Validate activity before betting a new project on gateway. Inference & Serving: Self-hosting rarely beats a hosted API on cost until you have steady, high-volume traffic. LLM Frameworks: Avoid a framework for a single prompt-and-retrieve call; the abstraction can cost more than it saves. ### When should I avoid LocalAI? Avoid LocalAI if you need to leverage GPU-specific optimizations for performance acceleration as it promotes no-GPU usage, potentially sacrificing speed for accessibility. Do not use LocalAI where specific language runtime environments are required that do not align with Go (the language in which LocalAI is written). ### Is gateway or LocalAI more popular on GitHub? LocalAI has more GitHub stars (47,477 vs 159). Stars measure visibility, not whether either tool fits your constraints. ### Are gateway and LocalAI open source? Yes - both are open-source projects on GitHub (gateway: Apache-2.0, LocalAI: MIT). ### Where can I find alternatives to gateway or LocalAI? GraphCanon lists graph-backed alternatives at [gateway alternatives](/tools/missingstudio-gateway/alternatives) and [LocalAI alternatives](/tools/mudler-localai/alternatives) ([gateway markdown twin](/tools/missingstudio-gateway/alternatives.md), [LocalAI markdown twin](/tools/mudler-localai/alternatives.md)), ranked by typed relationship edges rather than popularity votes. ### Is there a machine-readable version of this comparison? Yes. The markdown twin at [this comparison](/compare/missingstudio-gateway-vs-mudler-localai.md) mirrors this page for agents and LLM crawlers, with the same stats table and FAQ answers. ### Which is better maintained, gateway or LocalAI? gateway: Dormant. LocalAI: Very active. Compare maintenance labels, days since push, and release cadence in the trust section below - stars alone do not measure maintenance. ### Where are the full trust reports for gateway and LocalAI? GraphCanon publishes per-repo trust reports with dated maintenance, provenance, and scan summaries: [gateway trust report](/tools/missingstudio-gateway/trust); [LocalAI trust report](/tools/mudler-localai/trust). --- **Machine-readable endpoints** - JSON: [`/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=missingstudio-gateway`](/api/graphcanon/graph?tool=missingstudio-gateway) - LLM index: [/llms.txt](/llms.txt) - Full corpus: [/llms-full.txt](/llms-full.txt) _GraphCanon - The knowledge graph for AI development. https://www.graphcanon.com/_