Build a survival AI box

What works and what doesn't

Survival LLM, Survival LLM README, Brangus's post on X

The job

When the power and the internet are both out, a phone gets you nothing. You want to look up how to purify water, splint a wrist or keep food safe, and you want the answer to show where it came from. Survival LLM does that on a regular computer. The box makes it something you can carry, leave in a truck or a closet, and switch on during an outage.

The app downloads a local AI model and an offline library. You ask in plain language. It finds the relevant articles and answers with links to them. It's MIT-licensed, and it ships for Apple Silicon Macs and 64-bit Windows 10 and 11. There's no Linux or Raspberry Pi version, and that shapes this whole build.

Survival LLM, Survival LLM source on GitHub, MIT license

Parts

The recommended build. USD, as listed on each store page on Oct 26, 2026. $1,792.84 total, before shipping and tax. Storage is the PC's own 1 TB drive. The app needs about 25 GB for the model, 21 GB for the full library and another 27 GB free while the library installs.

Add-on: mesh texting

Optional. A Meshtastic node sends short texts over LoRa radio with no cell service. One Pod brings the total to $1,831.84.

Step by step

1. 1. Set up Windows while you're online

   Plug the PC into the wall, a TV or the Arzopa, and the keyboard receiver. Finish Windows setup and run Windows Update until nothing is left. Make a recovery USB if you have a spare stick. Everything from here to step 6 needs internet.

   GMKtec M6 Ultra

2. 2. Install Survival LLM

   Download the Windows zip from Brangus's page. Right-click it and choose Extract All, because it won't run from inside the zip. Move the extracted Survival LLM folder somewhere permanent, like C:\Survival LLM, then double-click Survival LLM.bat. When Windows says it protected your PC, click More info, then Run anyway.

   Survival LLM, Survival LLM README

3. 3. Let the app download everything

   The app opens in its own window. One click gets the AI engine (Ollama, 1.6 GB). It then suggests a model for your memory. On the M6 Ultra that's Nemotron 3.5 Lightning, a 25 GB download. Pick the Everything library (8.8 GB download, about 21 GB installed, and about 27 GB of temporary space while it unpacks). Plan on an hour or two.

   Survival LLM README, Survival LLM

4. 4. On a 32 GB PC, get Lightning anyway

   The app checks memory as Windows reports it, rounded to whole GB. A 32 GB PC with built-in graphics often shows 30 or 31, and Lightning shows as too big. First try the BIOS: if it has a UMA frame buffer setting, set it to the smallest. If it still says 30, pull the model with the app's own engine while the app is open, then open Model and click Use this. Skip this step on the 48 GB M6.

   "%LOCALAPPDATA%\Survival LLM\ollama\ollama.exe" pull nemotron-3.5-lightning:30b-a3b

   app/server.py (memory check), Survival LLM README

5. 5. Make it boot straight into the app

   Press Win+R, type shell:startup and press Enter. Right-click Survival LLM.bat, choose Show more options, then Create shortcut, and move the shortcut into that Startup folder. To skip the password screen, use Microsoft's Autologon tool. Only do that if you're fine with anyone who opens the case getting in. Then set the PC to never sleep and to come back on after a power cut, using the commands below and the BIOS's power-on-after-AC-loss setting if it has one.

   powercfg /change standby-timeout-ac 0
   powercfg /change hibernate-timeout-ac 0
   powercfg /change monitor-timeout-ac 30

   Microsoft Autologon (Sysinternals), powercfg command-line options

6. 6. Add Meshtastic (optional)

   While still online, open client.meshtastic.org in Edge and install it as an app from the address bar. Plug in the WisMesh Pod by USB-C and connect over serial. Set the region to US and give the node a name. Then switch Wi-Fi off and open the installed app again to make sure it still loads. If it doesn't, use the Meshtastic phone app over Bluetooth instead.

   Meshtastic web client, Meshtastic web client docs, RAK WisMesh Pod

7. 7. Cut the foam

   Don't drill the shell. Every hole costs you the waterproof rating. Run the box with the lid open and close it to carry. In the base foam, cut a pocket for the PC with about 2 cm of air on every side and nothing against the vent side, a slot for the keyboard, one for the power brick, and a channel for the fan to blow across the PC. Stick Dual Lock to the back of the monitor and inside the lid. Cables run over the rim.

   Pelican 1500, Scotch Extreme Fasteners at Home Depot, AC Infinity MULTIFAN S3

8. 8. Wire the power

   Everything runs off one AC plug. The power brick plugs into the RIVER's AC outlet. The PC powers the monitor over USB-C, the fan from a USB-A port and the Pod over USB-C. The keyboard runs on AA batteries. The solar panel plugs into the RIVER's XT60 input. Keep the RIVER next to the case, not inside it.

   EcoFlow RIVER 3 Plus, EcoFlow 110W Solar Panel

9. 9. Unplug the internet and test

   Turn off Wi-Fi, unplug Ethernet, restart, and work through the checklist below. Then leave it running on battery for a day and write down what the RIVER's screen says it drew.

   Survival LLM

Test it before you need it

• With Wi-Fi off and the cable out, the PC boots to the desktop without a password prompt (if you set Autologon) and Survival LLM opens on its own.
• The model picker shows Nemotron 3.5 Lightning as in use. On a 32 GB PC, that's after step 4.
• Ask three questions you know the answers to: how to purify water, how long food stays safe in a fridge with no power, how to treat a minor burn. Each answer lists sources. Click one and check that the cited passage says what the answer says.
• Time a long answer. Note the seconds and the watts the RIVER shows while it's answering.
• Pull the wall plug on the RIVER while the PC is on. The PC shouldn't reboot.
• Note the idle watts with the screen on. Check the math below against what you see.
• Run the PC under load for 30 minutes with the lid open and the fan on. The case of the PC should be warm, not too hot to touch.
• Put the panel in full sun at noon. The RIVER screen should show solar watts coming in.
• If you added Meshtastic, send a message to a second node or a phone, with the internet off.
• Close the case and carry it. Nothing rattles, and the monitor stays on the lid.

Caveats

• This is not medical advice

  Survival LLM can be wrong, and the smaller the model, the more often it is. In Brangus's own blind test, Lightning got 19 of 22 emergency questions right and Granite 8B got 14. Read the source the app shows before you act, and call for help if you can.

  How to help: Run Brangus's test questions on this box and post the score.

• Set it up online, then keep it current

  Setup needs internet and a few hours. After that it needs none. The app checks for updates once a day when it's online. Plug it in somewhere with Wi-Fi every few months so Windows and the library don't fall far behind.

  How to help: Tell us how long setup took on your connection.

• Heat in a closed case

  The M6 Ultra is rated to 40 °C and can pull 80 W when it's answering. In a shut case in the sun it would cook. Run it with the lid open and the fan on, and keep the case out of direct sun.

  How to help: Log PC temperatures in the case on a hot day.

• One power cord, one inverter

  Running the PC through the RIVER's AC outlet loses some power to the inverter, and we used 85% in the math. EcoFlow doesn't publish the inverter's idle draw, so measure yours. The PC has a USB4 port, but we couldn't confirm it charges from USB-C, so we didn't plan on it.

  How to help: If you get the PC running off the RIVER's USB-C or 12 V port, share what you used.

• Waterproof only when shut

  The Pelican is IP67 with the lid closed. Open, it's a tray. The RIVER and the panel sit outside it. The panel is rated IP68, but the RIVER isn't rated for rain.

  How to help: Show us a weather cover for the RIVER that doesn't trap heat.

• Mesh texting is short range

  Meshtastic sends short text messages from node to node. Range depends on terrain and how high the antenna sits. It needs other nodes around, and it isn't an SOS service. For that, carry a satellite messenger.

  How to help: Map the mesh near you and tell us how far your Pod reached.

• We haven't built one yet

  Every part is real and was in stock on Oct 26, 2026. We're building one now and will update this page with what goes wrong.

  How to help: If you build it first, tell us what broke.

Credit

Survival LLM is by Brangus (@RatOrthodox on X), released under the MIT license. The app, its library picks and the test scores on this page are Brangus's. It runs models through Ollama. This page started from the post above. The case, parts and wiring are our plan, and the diagrams are ours.

Brangus's post on X, Survival LLM, Survival LLM source on GitHub, MIT license