What changed
Perplexity made Portable Computer available in its Windows app for compatible NVIDIA GeForce RTX and RTX PRO systems with at least 24GB of VRAM. The agent can analyze local files and run multistep work on-device, use connected services, and request permission before escalating harder work to cloud models; local completions do not consume Perplexity Computer credits.
Why it matters
A consumer agent can now combine local private-file processing, browser and sandbox tools, connected accounts and optional cloud reasoning on common workstation hardware. The split architecture creates a consequential boundary between data that stays local and data or actions that leave the device.
What to do
Begin with a disposable Windows profile and non-sensitive files. Disable connectors, cloud escalation and external writes, confirm the selected local model and network traffic, then add one connector at a time and test permission prompts, source citations, a denied post, sandbox isolation, logs, deletion and offline behavior.
Caveat
Local execution does not make every workflow local: connectors, browser actions, posts and approved cloud escalation can expose data or change external systems. Privacy, model-quality and sandbox claims are vendor-reported, hardware support is limited, and DGX Station support is only planned.