Tether released BotPsy (also called QVAC BotPsy), a very small AI model with only about 800 million parameters. It is designed to run directly on a phone or other personal device and act as a personal assistant that can actually do things, not just chat. Instead of sending your data to the cloud, it stays on your device.
BotPsy works by calling tools (functions) that an app provides. For example, it can check or send emails, add events to a calendar, search for information, or control basic phone settings. It was built by starting with a small open model and then training it specifically to be better at multi-step tool use. In Tether’s tests on several agent benchmarks (tests that measure how well an AI can complete tasks using tools), BotPsy roughly doubled the scores of the model it was based on. It also outperformed some models that are 2.5 times larger.
The model is open-weight, so researchers and students can download it and experiment with it. It is aimed at everyday personal tasks of low to medium difficulty. This release is interesting for technology enthusiasts because it shows that carefully trained small models can be surprisingly capable for real agent-style work, and it prioritizes privacy by keeping processing local. It is a practical step toward personal AI assistants that do not require a constant internet connection or sending personal information to big servers.
Source: tether.