Sunk Cost
Sunk Cost
The text explains how a service estimates latency and cost by letting you change inputs like electricity, API $/kWh, and measured token speed, then it bases local speed on a memory-bandwidth model when nothing is measured. It sends your machine speed and monthly bill to the service only after you stop typing, and it collects no cookies and no IP address (only the country). As a result, browser tracking is avoided and the options/estimates are refined while API speed is used only to compare time, not to alter the underlying cost assumptions.
Why it matters
Sunk Cost estimates when local AI hardware will break even against paying for model APIs—and notes it may conclude it never will. The calculator considers factors like model fit, local speed, token use, context size, electricity, API latency, and falling API prices.
