I would very much like a local code assist tool. Assuming integration with editors is my problem, what's best in class this week if a) I have a respectable GPU; b) I don't, and need CPU-only?

Check out https://github.com/TabbyML/tabby, which is fully self-hostable and comes with niche features.

On M1/M2, it offers a convenient single binary deployment, thanks to Rust. You can find the latest release at https://github.com/TabbyML/tabby/releases/tag/latest

(Disclaimer: I am the author)