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Can I run Apple OpenELM 1.1B on iPhone Air?

Compatibility verdict VRAM threshold engine
Yes, it runs usable speed ~61 tok/s est.

Yes. Apple OpenELM 1.1B runs on iPhone Air at Q4_K_M (~1.7 GB of ~8 GB usable).

Needs ~1.7 GB Device usable ~8 GB

Runs at Q4_K_M using ~1.7 GB of ~8 GB usable. You have room for FP16 for higher quality.

That figure is at a 4k context and moves about ±15% as context length changes. iPhone Air leaves ~6.3 GB of headroom, room to step up to FP16 for higher quality.

Q4_K_M needed
~1.7 GB
Usable on device
~8 GB
Device memory
12 GB
Best quant
Q4_K_M
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Which quant fits

Quant ladder vs ~8 GB usable
Q2_K
~1.6 GB
Q3_K_M
~1.6 GB
Q4_K_M
~1.7 GB
Q5_K_M
~1.9 GB
Q6_K
~2 GB
Q8_0
~2.2 GB
FP16
~3.3 GB
The line marks iPhone Air's ~8 GB budget; rungs past it are too large.

How to run it

On iOS use Apple Foundation Models (Built into iOS 26, ~3B on-device model, zero download, fully private.).

Model OpenELM
Parameters
1.1B
Q4_K_M size
0.63 GB
Q8_0 size
1.07 GB
Context
2k
Full Apple OpenELM 1.1B requirements →
Device iOS
Memory
12 GB unified
Usable for weights
~8 GB
Best runtime
llama.cpp + Metal (via PocketPal or Off Grid app)
Best models for iPhone Air →

You could also run

Run Apple OpenELM 1.1B on other hardware

Apple M1 (8GB)8GB RAM Laptop (CPU/iGPU only)iPhone 15 ProiPhone 16iPhone 16 ProGeneric Android Phone (8GB RAM)

FAQ

Can iPhone Air run Apple OpenELM 1.1B?

Yes. Apple OpenELM 1.1B runs on iPhone Air at Q4_K_M (~1.7 GB of ~8 GB usable).

How much memory does Apple OpenELM 1.1B need?

iPhone Air has room to spare. At Q4_K_M the weights are ~0.63 GB; with KV cache and runtime overhead, budget ~1.7 GB at a 4k context.

What is the best tool to run Apple OpenELM 1.1B on iOS?

On iPhone and iPad, Apple Foundation Models (Built into iOS 26, ~3B on-device model, zero download, fully private.) is the standard choice. Phones realistically run 1B-4B class models. Anything larger thermally throttles or OOMs.

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Apple OpenELM 1.1B on iPhone Air compatibility badge A live badge for your model card or README, updated as the data is.
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$ [![Apple OpenELM 1.1B on iPhone Air](https://localmodel.run/badge/openelm-1.1b/iphone-air.svg)](https://localmodel.run/can-i-run/openelm-1.1b/iphone-air)

Sources

Weights are measured from GGUF files; KV cache and overhead are computed, so totals can vary ~15% with context and runtime. Any tok/s is a bandwidth estimate. See methodology.