Blog · 8 October 2026 · 7 min read
Moving from ChatGPT and Claude to a local AI: what you can bring with you
Anyone who has been using ChatGPT or Claude for years has built up conversations, projects and custom-made assistants. The first question, before moving to a local AI, is always the same: will I lose everything? No, but not everything transfers in the same way.
In short: all the conversations can be transferred, using the official data export that ChatGPT and Claude make available in their settings. What does not come across automatically are the files created inside chats, custom assistants and the "memory" the platforms have built up about you: they are recreated in the new system starting from the original instructions and documents. The old chats are best kept in a separate archive, which the local AI consults when needed, without mixing them with company documents.
What can be transferred?
All the conversations, with date and title. Both ChatGPT and Claude let you download a copy of your data: inside are the account data and the text of all the chats.
| What | Can it be transferred? | How |
|---|---|---|
| Conversations | Yes, all of them | From the official data export |
| Custom instructions and prompts | Partly | They are copied by hand and become the instructions for the new assistants |
| Custom assistants (GPTs, projects) | No, they are recreated | Starting from the original instructions and documents |
| Documents uploaded to projects | Not from the export | They are re-uploaded from the copies on the computer or company cloud |
| Files created within the chats | No | The text of the conversation remains, the file has to be regenerated or retrieved |
| Memory built up by the platform | No, it is recreated | It is rewritten in the instructions of the new system |
The part that matters most is not the chats but the assistants: instructions, tone, examples and reference documents are your way of working. Recreating them well in the new system is worth more than a thousand imported conversations.
How do you request the export from ChatGPT and Claude?
You request it from the account settings, and the file arrives as a link by email. The steps are similar on the two platforms:
- ChatGPT: Settings, then Data controls, then Export data. Preparation can take anywhere from a few minutes to a few days.
- Claude: Settings, then Privacy, then Export data. It is done from the website or the desktop app, not from the phone apps.
Three things to know before clicking:
- The link expires 24 hours after it arrives, on both platforms. It should be downloaded straight away, while signed in with the same account. If it expires, you repeat the request.
- With business plans everything changes. In ChatGPT Business and Enterprise workspaces, self-service export is not available. On Claude Team and Enterprise, only the organisation's primary owner can request it. In these cases another route has to be found, to be assessed case by case.
- It is worth requesting it straight away, even before the project starts: that way you can see what it really contains and decide with the data in front of you.
Tip: the export is a compressed file containing personal data and, often, confidential company information. Treat it as a confidential document: don't pass it around by email, and delete it from your downloads once it has been imported.
What cannot be transferred, and why?
What cannot be transferred is whatever the platforms do not put in the export or that works only inside them. In practice:
- Files created in chats (documents, spreadsheets, images): the archive keeps the conversation, not always the file. The important ones should be downloaded by hand before you close the subscription.
- Custom assistants as such: a GPT or a project lives in the platform that created it. It is rebuilt, not moved.
- The memory: what the platform has learnt about you over time is not handed over in a reusable form. The useful information (role, company, writing preferences) is rewritten by hand in the new system's instructions.
- The original documents from projects: at most, the export contains the extracted text. The originals are re-uploaded from the copies you have on your computer or in the company cloud.
There is also a technical limit to be aware of. Open WebUI, the most widely used chat interface for local AI, recognises the ChatGPT export format by itself. For Claude there is no built-in converter: the archive first has to be converted with a script. It is a job that is done only once, but it needs to be budgeted for.
Do old chats become part of the AI's knowledge or do they remain an archive?
Both, but in two different places. The conversations stay in a separate archive, which can be searched and which the local AI consults when needed. In addition, the chats for each project are re-read and a summary sheet is drawn from them with useful information, decisions and text: that is what goes into the AI's knowledge.
The reason is practical. Raw chats contain attempts, discarded versions and outdated information: if they end up alongside the company documents, the AI risks answering with a draft from two years ago instead of the current price list.
A clarification that avoids misunderstandings: the local AI does not "learn" from old chats. It consults them when needed, as it does with other documents. The main knowledge stays in the company's documents, in the email and in the management system data. We explain how this consultation works in the guide on local AI and company documents.
The archive is organised by source platform and by project, with the date. You can search both by exact words and by topic.
Where do you start, in practice?
You start from the list of what you actually use, not from importing everything. Four steps, in this order:
- Request the two exports and download them as soon as the link arrives.
- List the assistants you use every week and for each one copy the instructions, examples and attached documents. They are the ones that become the new assistants of the local AI.
- Retrieve the original documents of your projects from the folders where you keep them, instead of looking for them inside the chats.
- Download the important files created in chats before cancelling any subscription.
Please note: do not cancel the subscription until the import has been verified. On some platforms, once the account is closed, the data can no longer be recovered.
How we handle it in our projects
Migration is part of the installation: we import the conversations, build the separate archive and recreate the assistants together with the people who use them, because only those who wrote them know which ones really work. We do this on site, throughout Italy, during the installation and training days.
If you are considering the move, on the Local AI for businesses page you will find how we work. If you would like to understand what can be recovered in your case, write to us and tell us which platforms you use and on which plan.
Sources
- OpenAI – Exporting your ChatGPT history and data (help centre)
- OpenAI – Data, sharing and privacy in ChatGPT Business
- Anthropic – How to export your Claude data (help centre)
- Open WebUI – Importing and exporting chats (official documentation)
- Open WebUI – Custom models: instructions, documents and tools
- Open WebUI – Knowledge (knowledge bases)
About the author: Dabryx
Dabryx is an Italian software house that installs local AI in companies, on site across Italy, on servers or Macs. The basic installation starts at €2,900, hardware not included, and consulting at €100 per hour. The office is in Rocca Priora, near Rome.
We also install local AI in Rome, Milan, Parma and Reggio Emilia, and we develop custom management systems and custom software.
Frequently asked questions
Can I import ChatGPT conversations into a local AI?
Yes. You request the data export from the ChatGPT settings and import the file into the local AI's interface. Open WebUI recognises the ChatGPT format by itself. It is best to keep the chats in an archive separate from the company documents.
Can my custom GPTs be transferred?
No, not as such: they live inside the platform that created them. They are recreated as assistants of the local AI starting from the same instructions, examples and reference documents.
Does the local AI learn from my old conversations?
No. It consults them when needed, as it does with other documents, but the model is not retrained. That is why it is better to extract a tidy summary sheet from the chats for each project, instead of uploading everything as it is.
How long do I have to download the export?
The link that arrives by email expires after 24 hours, on both ChatGPT and Claude. If it expires, simply repeat the request from the settings.
Want an estimate for your company?
Tell us how many people will use the AI and what for: we'll tell you which configuration you need.
Response times
Within 2 hours on business days (9:00–18:00) for clients with a support contract.
AI consulting
Basic installation from €2,900, consultancy from €100 per hour, on your company's server or Mac.
Where we work
Throughout Italy: we come on site to the client's premises and also support you remotely.