Compare Lithi Connect
Which AI network fits your Mac?
Compare Lithi Connect, Darkbloom, exo and Hyperspace by requirements, work, rewards and setup.
Paid task networks
Lithi Connect and Darkbloom describe paid AI work, with different requirements and earnings conditions.
Own-device cluster
exo links devices you own into a cluster for running models; its page describes no payment for contributing a device.
Points participation
Hyperspace describes a points-based participation model. Points are not a guaranteed income claim.
Lithi Connect and Darkbloom, question by question
Start with the short answer in each cell. Open Source details for the full sourced statement, qualifications and links.
| Question | Lithi Connect | Darkbloom |
|---|---|---|
| Mac and work | ||
| Which Macs can join | Use an Apple silicon Mac with at least 16GB of memory, running macOS 15 or macOS 26. Setup checks that your Mac can take part. Earnings illustration coverage is a separate check. Source detailsUse an Apple silicon Mac with at least 16GB of memory, running macOS 15 or macOS 26. Setup checks that your Mac can take part. Supported families include MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, Mac mini, Mac Studio, iMac and Mac Pro. Published earnings illustrations cover MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, Mac mini, Mac Studio and iMac; illustration coverage does not decide compatibility or guarantee work. | 36 GB to 256 GB minimum RAM, by model Reported device rule: Personally owned devices only Source detailsProviders run Apple silicon Macs. The models table lists a minimum RAM for each model, from 36 GB for Gemma 4 26B and Qwen3.5 27B up to 256 GB for MiniMax M2.5. The Register reports that the terms of service allow only personally owned devices, with no rental arbitrage from cloud providers. Official documentation · Press report |
| What work runs | Suitable AI tasks run locally on your Mac's Apple silicon chip: documents, recordings, code and other supported work. Source detailsSmall parts of paid AI jobs from businesses: translating documents, pulling details out of scans and forms, turning recordings into transcripts and summaries, and reviewing code. Models run locally on your Mac's Apple silicon chip. | Operator describes: Text, images and speech-to-text inference Source detailsThe announcement says the live system supports text, image and speech-to-text work through an OpenAI-compatible API. Company blog |
| Setup effort | Install the Lithi app, choose available hours and keep your Mac plugged in. Pause whenever you like. Source detailsInstall the Lithi app, or let an AI agent like Claude Code set it up. Choose when your Mac can help, keep it plugged in, and pause whenever you like. | Install the provider agent, then follow the provider quickstart Source detailsProviders install the provider agent on an Apple silicon Mac; the documentation links a provider quickstart for the steps. Official documentation |
| Earnings and payment | ||
| What earnings are stated | $41.83 to $285.73 a month in published illustrations at 12 available hours a day, after estimated electricity and before tax. Work and earnings are not guaranteed. Source detailsPublished illustrations range from $41.83 to $285.73 a month at 12 available hours a day, for the configurations with stated assumptions. Choose your own Mac for its figure. Each figure assumes 12 available hours a day (360 hours in a 30-day month) and electricity at $0.1835 per kWh, the US average residential price, June 2026 (EIA Electric Power Monthly, Table 5.3). It is in US dollars, after estimated electricity and before tax. | Operator-reported: $120 to $200 a month per machine, on average. This is not an independent measurement; reported usage is not continuous. Source detailsAn Eigen Labs engineer told The Register that people earn $120 to $200 a month per machine on average. This is Eigen Labs' own statement, not an independent measurement. The Register reports that usage is not continuous and that, of more than 900 providers, not all are active at any time. The same engineer said about 250 Macs were online when the article ran. Company statement to the press |
| How earnings are set and paid | Payment follows customer payment for accepted work. 50% of eligible settled task revenue is allocated to the provider pool for Macs that helped complete accepted work; this is a pool, not a per-Mac promise. Work is not guaranteed. Source detailsEarnings are approved for accepted work after the customer has paid, then appear in an earnings statement. 50% of eligible settled task revenue is allocated to the provider pool for Macs that helped complete accepted work; this is a pool, not a per-Mac promise. Work is not guaranteed. | Operator states: 95% of revenue to providers. No fee schedule is stated. Source detailsThe announcement says providers keep 95% of revenue. It gives no fee schedule. Company blog |
| Cost to you | The illustration subtracts estimated electricity using the selected price and Apple's power figure. It is before tax. Source detailsElectricity. The estimator takes it off the estimate using Apple's power figure for your Mac and a price you can change. Taxes are not deducted. | Electricity under about $2 a month, per the company's estimate Source detailsThe Register reports that the company's earnings estimate includes electricity of almost $2 a month, and mentions fan noise where it applies. Press report |
| Access and operation | ||
| Status | Lithi Connect is the Mac app for the Lithi Agent Network. Published earnings are illustrations, not a live balance or promised work. Source detailsLithi Connect is the Mac app for the Lithi Agent Network. The earnings estimator is illustrative: not a forecast, a live balance or a promise of pay. | Describes itself as: Experimental research prototype. Its documentation says not to use it in production. Source detailsThe documentation calls Darkbloom an experimental research prototype under active development and says it should not be used in production. Eigen Labs announced Darkbloom on 15 April 2026 and says it is live in research preview, with the paper published and the code open-sourced. Official documentation · Company blog |
| Privacy and isolation | Lithi describes encryption in transit and an isolated workspace, separate from your desktop, personal files and Mac controls. Source detailsLithi says customer work is encrypted on its way to your Mac and decrypted only inside Lithi's bounded workspace while the task runs. It runs in an isolated environment that cannot reach your desktop, personal files or Mac controls. | Documentation describes: Per-provider request encryption and a hardened provider process Coordinator is part of the trusted routing layer Source detailsThe documentation says the coordinator runs in a Confidential VM with encrypted memory, encrypts each request to the chosen provider's public key, and that the provider process blocks debugger attachment and memory-reading APIs. The announcement states: "Today, the coordinator remains part of the trusted routing layer." Official documentation · Company blog |
Sources checked 23 October 2026. Darkbloom figures are Eigen Labs’ statements or press reports, not Lithi measurements.
Choose by your Mac and goal
Check your Mac's requirements, then choose by the work you want to support and the earnings terms you accept.
Lithi Connect may suit you if
- You want to share one personal Mac, or Macs you own or are authorized to manage. Check the Mac requirements before using an earnings illustration.
- You want to compare an illustration using your Mac, hours and electricity price. Business administration is optional.
- You want to choose when your Mac can help and pause sharing whenever you need it.
Darkbloom may suit you if
- You own a high-memory Mac. Darkbloom's model table starts at 36 GB of memory, so it is aimed at Macs above that line.
- You want to take part in a research preview and accept that its own documentation says not to use it in production.
- You want the revenue share Eigen Labs announces: 95% of revenue to providers.
Before joining
- Lithi's earnings figures are illustrations. Work is never guaranteed, and pay follows accepted work after the customer has paid. Darkbloom's reported figures describe its operator's claim.
- On Lithi, your share comes from a provider pool shared among the Macs that helped, rather than a fixed amount per Mac. Invites and introductions are paid from Lithi's share, and the rest runs and grows the network.
- Lithi describes its isolation in its own words. Compare it with Darkbloom's published design and read each project's security documentation before you decide.
Other networks, different goals
exo and Hyperspace work differently from paid task networks. Compare their purpose, reward model and device requirements before treating them as earnings options.
| Network | Purpose | Rewards | Devices |
|---|---|---|---|
| exoexo labs | Open-source cluster software for your own devices Full detailsexo is open-source software (Apache-2.0) that links your own devices into one AI cluster, so you can run models too large for a single device. The repository describes no payment, marketplace or compensation for contributing a device. The macOS app requires macOS Tahoe 26.2 or later. Running from source uses the GPU on macOS. Official documentation | The repository describes no payment, marketplace or compensation for contributing a device. Official documentation | The macOS app requires macOS Tahoe 26.2 or later. Running from source uses the GPU on macOS. Official documentation |
| HyperspaceHyperspace | Peer-to-peer inference network Full detailsHyperspace describes a peer-to-peer AI inference network built on libp2p, with command-line, tray app and browser clients, under the MIT licence. Participants earn points for staying online and for serving requests. Wallet commands refer to USDC settlement, but the page gives no conversion rate and promises no earnings. The command-line and tray clients are listed for macOS on Apple silicon and Intel; a browser client runs in Chrome or Edge 113 or later. Official documentation | Participants earn points for staying online and for serving requests. Wallet commands refer to USDC settlement, but the page gives no conversion rate and promises no earnings. Official documentation | The command-line and tray clients are listed for macOS on Apple silicon and Intel; a browser client runs in Chrome or Edge 113 or later. Official documentation |
Sources checked 23 October 2026.
Questions Mac owners ask before choosing
Still have a question?
Choose the network that fits your Mac and goal, then check the requirements and earnings basis before you join.