Lightning Review 2024: What It Is, How to Use It & Is It Worth It?

So, what's the real deal with Lightning? Well, it's all about simplifying the process of developing, training, and deploying AI models. This platform is a great fit for teams that want to focus on building AI without the usual cloud-related headaches. It's also a great tool for those who want to use their own data across various services like S3, Snowflake, BigQuery, and more. Everything runs on your cloud account on your private VPC, which gives you a lot of control and security.

One of the major pros of Lightning is its open-source nature. With over 17,000 projects using it, you're joining a large community of developers who are constantly improving and expanding the platform. It's also built on PyTorch Lightning, which is a well-respected framework in the AI community. This means you can train and deploy any PyTorch model without the boilerplate, which can save you a lot of time and effort.

However, no tool is perfect, and Lightning is no exception. While it's great for teams that are already familiar with PyTorch, it will not be a good fit for those who prefer other frameworks. Also, while it does a lot to simplify the process of developing and deploying AI, there's still a learning curve involved, especially for those new to AI.

Now, let's talk about pricing. Lightning works on a credit system and offers a generous free plan with 30 free credits per month. This is great for users on a budget and those who just want to try out the platform. If you decide you like it, you can purchase more credits in a pay-as-you-go fashion.

In conclusion, Lightning Apps is a solid platform for teams looking to develop, train, and deploy AI models. It's open-source, built on a respected framework, and designed to simplify the process. However, its suitability will depend on your familiarity with PyTorch and your willingness to navigate the learning curve.