Zettlab AI NAS

Zettlab is a startup that says it wants to build storage that is more intelligent, more secure and better looking. Its debut product, the Zettlab AI NAS, is pitched as a personal cloud for people weighing rising cloud storage costs, the risk of losing data on external drives and the limits of conventional NAS systems. According to the maker, it requires no monthly subscription.

The hardware

• Up to 200TB of storage capacity
• Intel Core Ultra 5 125H processor with 34 TOPS of compute
• 16GB DDR5 RAM, expandable to 96GB
• Dual 10GbE LAN ports and Dual USB4 ports
• Transfer speeds of up to 2500MB/s, which the maker says moves a 10GB file in seconds

AI that stays on the box

The headline feature is local AI. Instead of searching by file name or tag, the maker says you can search in natural language, with a query such as "photos from last summer's family vacation." An AI categorization feature sorts files into user-defined categories like hobbies, work or family. A local chatbot works without an internet connection, answering questions about operating the NAS and offering guidance on search and categories.

Zettlab also lists document analysis, which extracts key points from long reports or summarizes contracts, and automatic transcription that turns audio and video into subtitles and summaries, a feature aimed at content creators such as YouTube producers.

Software and security

The NAS runs ZettOS, Zettlab's own operating system, which the company says is designed to be intuitive for beginners. It connects to smartphones, TVs and laptops, and supports remote access from outside the home. On security, the maker says its local AI LLM processes all data on the device, keeping sensitive information away from external threats. It also supports RAID configurations and UPS for protection against hardware failure and power outages, plus transmission encryption.

Zettlab AI NAS is presented as a Kickstarter project, and the company positions it for use across business, education and healthcare as well as personal storage.