Hugging Face’s new iOS app taps AI to describe what you’re looking at

AI startup Hugging Face has released a new app for iOS that only does one thing: uses offline, local AI to describe what’s in view of your iPhone’s camera.

The app, called HuggingSnap, taps Hugging Face’s in-house vision model, smolvlm2, to analyze what your phone sees in real-time without sending data off to the cloud. Point your camera and ask a question or request a description, and HuggingSnap will identify objects, explain scenes, read text, and generally try to make sense of what you’re looking at.

The concept certainly isn’t novel. Many AI-powered apps — and Apple’s own Apple Intelligence suite of AI-powered features — can accomplish the same. But as Hugging Face notes in HuggingSnap’s App Store description, HuggingSnap works offline, is energy-efficient, and processes all data on your phone.

“It’s helpful when shopping, traveling, studying, or just exploring your surroundings,” the company writes. “HuggingSnap brings smart vision AI to your iPhone.”

HuggingSnap requires iOS 18 or later. It’s also compatible with macOS devices and the Apple Vision Pro, should you wish to use it on a laptop or headset instead.