Have you ever ever typed one thing personal into an AI chatbot and questioned the place that info really goes? Possibly it was a piece doc, a private concept, or perhaps a delicate query you didn’t need connected to your title. With AI turning into a part of on a regular basis life, that feeling of “what occurs to my information after I hit ship?” is turning into tougher to disregard.
In truth, a Pew Analysis Heart survey discovered that 70% of People who’ve heard of AI have little to no belief in corporations to make accountable selections about how they use AI of their merchandise.
That’s the place Lumo AI takes a special method. Created by Proton (the corporate behind Proton Mail and Proton VPN) Lumo is an AI assistant designed round privateness first. As an alternative of utilizing your conversations to enhance AI fashions, Lumo makes use of zero-access encryption, that means even Proton can’t learn your saved chats.
However privateness alone isn’t sufficient. An important AI assistant nonetheless must be helpful. So I examined Lumo AI to see the way it handles real-world duties like analyzing paperwork, researching info, organizing initiatives, and answering advanced questions.
On this Lumo AI evaluate, I’ll talk about the professionals and cons, what it’s, who it’s finest for, and its key options. Then, I’ll present you ways I arrange and used Lumo AI to run a non-public analysis workflow from begin to end.
I’ll end the article by evaluating it to my high three alternate options (Duck.ai, Kagi, and Venice.ai). By the top, you’ll know which AI assistant is best for you.
Verdict
General, Lumo AI is a good alternative for individuals who need a extra personal AI assistant with out giving up helpful options like file uploads, net search, picture instruments, and entry gadgets. Whereas it will not be as highly effective as some main AI fashions and may make errors, it presents steadiness of privateness, simplicity, and each day usefulness.
Professionals and Cons
- Sturdy privateness with encrypted chats that Proton can’t even learn.
- Conversations aren’t used to coach AI fashions.
- Ghost Mode lets you might have personal chats that aren’t saved.
- Protected by Swiss and European privateness legal guidelines.
- Newbie-friendly interface that’s straightforward to make use of.
- Add information like PDFs and CSVs for evaluation.
- Join with Proton Drive to securley entry your information.
- Tasks and reminiscence assist arrange your work throughout chats and gadgets.
- Free to attempt with out creating an account.
- Nice for writing, summarizing, analysis, and fundamental coding duties.
- Non-public net seek for discovering up-to-date info.
- Can generate and perceive photos with Lumo 2.0.
- Accessible on the internet, iOS, and Android.
- Not as highly effective as the most effective AI fashions for advanced duties, coding, or writing.
- Could make errors or give overstatements, so solutions have to be verified by a human.
- Could also be extra cautious and refuse some requests that different AI assistants reply.
- The free plan has pretty strict utilization limits.
- Your prompts should nonetheless be processed by the AI to generate a response, though your chats are encrypted.
- Fewer options and integrations than some bigger AI assistants.
- Chat historical past is restricted to 7 days on the free plan.
What’s Lumo AI?
Lumo is an AI chat assistant made by Proton that places privateness first. Not simply privateness as a advertising declare, however baked into the way it works. It makes use of “zero-access encryption,” which suggests your conversations get encrypted in order that even Proton themselves can’t learn them.
The Firm Behind Lumo AI: Proton
When you don’t know Proton, they’re the corporate behind Proton Mail and Proton VPN. So once they launched an AI assistant, it felt like a pure subsequent step for an organization that’s been within the privateness sport for some time.
Primarily based in Europe
Lumo runs on European infrastructure and operates below Swiss and EU-style privateness regulation, not US regulation. That distinction is larger than it sounds.
The distinction is that Swiss and European privateness frameworks (akin to GDPR) usually place stronger restrictions on information assortment and processing than many U.S. privateness legal guidelines. As a European-based firm, Lumo operates inside that stricter privateness surroundings.
Open-Supply Code for Belief & Transparency
One factor I actually admire about Lumo is that its code is open supply, permitting safety researchers and anybody to examine the way it works as a substitute of taking privateness claims at face worth.
“Privateness-focused” doesn’t imply “much less succesful,” as if Lumo is a stripped-down chatbot that may’t do a lot. It will probably reply questions, assist create drafts, and carry out net searches when enabled. It’s a full AI assistant, simply designed round a special method: serving to you with out utilizing your conversations to construct a private profile.
Who’s Lumo AI Finest For?
Lumo AI is finest for individuals who want robust privateness and information management:
- Professionals who worth privateness and deal with delicate info (like attorneys, therapists, journalists, and researchers) and don’t need their chats saved or used for AI coaching.
- Builders and founders constructing software program, working with delicate code, or growing new merchandise who wish to maintain their information personal.
- Healthcare and authorized professionals who deal with delicate info and want additional privateness safety.
- Individuals who favor European privateness protections and wish their information saved on European servers as a substitute of with US-based suppliers.
- College students and researchers who work on necessary paperwork like theses, grant proposals, or functions and wish to maintain their drafts personal.
- Writers who use AI for outlines, drafts, and articles and wish to maintain their information protected.
- Individuals who need a easy, ad-free AI assistant for writing, analysis, coding, and planning whereas prioritizing privateness.
Lumo AI Key Options
Listed here are Lumo AI’s key options.
Privateness & Safety
- Chats are protected with encryption, that means solely you might have entry to the important thing wanted to learn them.
- Chats aren’t logged or used to coach AI fashions.
- Ghost Mode retains your conversations short-term and off the document, with out saving them to your machine or account.
- Lumo makes use of open-source software program and fashions hosted on Proton’s European servers.
Intelligence
- Solves advanced issues (Considering Mode) by breaking them into smaller steps.
- Code help for writing, understanding, and debugging code.
- Summarizes paperwork and helps create content material like emails, blogs, and scripts.
- Lumo 2.0 can now create and perceive photos.
- Use the Max mannequin for advanced work or the Lite mannequin for on a regular basis duties.
Context & Reminiscence
- Lengthy-term reminiscence remembers your preferences and particulars throughout chats when enabled.
- Tasks arrange associated chats, information, and directions in workspaces that sync throughout gadgets.
Internet & File Integration
- Non-public net search could be turned on if you want up-to-date info.
- File uploads allow you to analyze paperwork like PDFs and CSVs so as to add extra context to your chats.
- Proton Drive integration attaches information immediately out of your Drive.
Find out how to Use Lumo AI
Right here’s how I arrange and used Lumo AI to run a non-public analysis workflow from begin to end:
- Discover the Modes (Visitor & Ghost)
- Create a Free Account
- Obtain the Restoration Phrase
- Create a New Challenge
- Add a File
- Flip Off Internet Search
- Select an AI Mannequin & Reply Mode
- Ship a Immediate
- Validate the Data
- Strive Ghost Mode
Step 1: Discover the Modes (Visitor & Ghost)
Go to lumo.proton.me (or launch the cell app). You possibly can soar proper in as a visitor with out creating an account for fast queries.
Because you haven’t created an account, your queries are deleted and aren’t linked to any private info or account historical past. So this selection is finest if you wish to rapidly take a look at Lumo whereas preserving your interactions separate from a private profile.
For instance, you would possibly favor Visitor Mode (or Ghost Mode) when sharing delicate info with Lumo, like unreleased API keys, personal code snippets, or confidential contracts. This offers you an additional layer of peace of thoughts by stopping native historical past from saving.
Step 2: Create a Free Account
Alternatively, you may create a free account.
Creating an account allows you to sync conversations throughout gadgets, add information via Proton Drive, and use personalised reminiscence throughout chats. Proton protects these options with zero-access encryption, so your information stays personal and can’t be accessed by Proton.
Step 3: Obtain the Restoration Phrase
When making a Lumo AI account, you’l get a restoration phrase. This phrase will restore your Proton account for those who’re ever locked out, so ensure you retailer it safely.
That’s how critically Proton takes your privateness and safety. Even Proton can’t get well your account with out this phrase.
Step 4: Create a New Challenge
As soon as your account is created, click on “+” subsequent to “Tasks” within the sidebar.
Give the mission a reputation (e.g., “Q3 M&A Goal Evaluation”).
From there, Set your Challenge Directions. Add persistent guidelines like: “At all times output responses in markdown, prioritize danger elements, and format monetary metrics in customary tables.”
Step 5: Add a File
Add a file by hitting the “+” within the empty area with one in all these three strategies:
- Add a file from Proton Drive
- Add out of your machine
- Draw a sketch
Step 6: Flip Off Internet Search
Click on on “Instruments” and switch the “Internet search” toggle off.
Step 7: Select an AI Mannequin & Reply Mode
Subsequent, select your mannequin.
Ensure that the AI mannequin is about to “Lumo 2.0 Max” (a high-performance mannequin for advanced duties), and ensure “Considering Mode” (for extra thorough solutions) is chosen.
Step 8: Ship a Immediate
Final however not least, add your immediate (e.g., “Extract the highest 3 monetary liabilities talked about throughout these connected reviews”) and hit ship.
Step 9: Validate the Data
Instantly, Lumo set to work and answered my query inside seconds.
Most of its evaluation was correct, but it surely did make just a few unsupported claims. For instance, it incorrectly acknowledged that Acme had the smallest revenue-cost hole, when Nexus really had the thinnest working margin.
However except for a handful of overstatements and one factual error, the evaluation was roughly 75% correct.
Step 10: Strive Ghost Mode
Subsequent, begin a brand new chat and activate Ghost Mode.
It launches an incognito session that runs parallel to your essential workspace. It doesn’t save any historical past to your native storage, and the second you shut the browser tab or cell session, all short-term encryption keys and dialog RAM are completely purged.
For instance, you should use Ghost Mode to rapidly search for latest information concerning the firm you’re researching. Utilizing a non-public session retains these searches separate out of your common chats, so that they gained’t seem in your historical past or have an effect on your saved conversations.
To activate Ghost Mode, flip the Ghost Mode toggle on within the left navigation sidebar.
When you’ve bought Ghost Mode turned on, re-enable the Internet Search device within the backside panel, maintain the mannequin set to Lumo 2.0 Max, and sort:
“What are the latest public regulatory filings or information updates concerning OpenAI’s information privateness compliance standing?”
Inside seconds, Lumo searches the online and returns a abstract of the most recent outcomes.
When you’ve copied the important thing factors into your native mission notes, simply shut the Ghost tab. The complete session disappears, leaving no document in your account historical past or in your machine.
Nevertheless, whereas the data was largely correct, some claims wanted stronger sources. For necessary matters like authorized points or compliance, it’s finest to make use of it as a place to begin for analysis and double-check the data with official sources.
General, Lumo AI impressed me with its privateness options, straightforward setup, and skill to rapidly analyze paperwork and search the online. Whereas its solutions have been usually correct and helpful, I discovered that necessary claims nonetheless wanted verification. It’s a powerful analysis assistant however not a substitute for checking official sources.
High 3 Lumo AI Alternate options
In style AI assistants like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini as a result of they lack strict zero-access encryption, log conversations, and use information for mannequin coaching. Listed here are the most effective Lumo AI alternate options I’d recomend.
DuckDuckGo AI (Duck AI)
The primary Lumo AI different I’d advocate is Duck.ai. It’s one other AI chatbot targeted on privateness from DuckDuckGo that offers you entry to in style AI fashions (like GPT-5.4 and Claude Haiku 4.5) without having an account or storing your private info.
Each platforms prioritize privateness, so that they’re each nice choices for individuals who need AI help with out having their conversations used for monitoring or coaching. Additionally they each provide nameless entry, that means you can begin chatting with out creating an account.
Nevertheless, Lumo AI presents a extra full privacy-focused AI expertise with options like zero-access encryption, Tasks, reminiscence, and Proton Drive integration. Duck.ai takes a less complicated method by offering entry to a number of AI chat fashions via DuckDuckGo whereas anonymizing your requests and preserving AI options elective.
For a light-weight AI chatbot with robust privateness protections, select Duck.ai. For a full AI assistant with deeper privateness options and extra superior workspace instruments, select Lumo AI.
Kagi
The subsequent Lumo AI different I’d advocate is Kagi. It’s a search engine targeted on privateness that offers you an ad-free strategy to browse the online, together with AI instruments like Kagi Assistant that allow you to use totally different AI fashions with out monitoring your exercise.
Each platforms are nice for individuals who worth privateness and wish extra management over their information. Nevertheless, they concentrate on totally different areas.
On the one hand, Lumo is a non-public AI chat assistant designed for conversations, writing, analysis, and doc evaluation. The AI conversations are encrypted, and it comes with different options like personal file evaluation, picture era, Tasks for organizing work, and reminiscence for remembering preferences and particulars throughout chats when enabled.
In the meantime, Kagi focuses on making a cleaner, extra personal search expertise. It stands out with its ad-free search, tracker blocking, and AI options that mix a number of language fashions with Kagi’s search outcomes.
For personal net looking, ad-free search, and discovering higher search outcomes with out monitoring, select Kagi. For an AI assistant that focuses on privateness and helps with writing, analysis, coding, and analyzing information, select Lumo AI.
Venice.ai
The ultimate Lumo AI different I’d advocate is Venice.ai. It’s an AI platform targeted on privateness that permits you to chat, generate photos and movies, write code, and create content material utilizing a variety of AI fashions. It additionally presents a number of privateness choices, together with nameless chats and end-to-end encrypted processing.
Each platforms put privateness first with AI writing, coding help, and net search with out utilizing your conversations to coach AI fashions.
Nevertheless, Venice.ai stands out with its broader vary of AI capabilities, together with video and music era, developer APIs, uncensored AI fashions, and extra superior choices for creators and builders. In the meantime, Lumo AI focuses on delivering a less complicated expertise with encrypted chats, Ghost Mode, Proton Drive integration, Tasks, and powerful protections backed by Swiss and European privateness legal guidelines.
For the widest AI mannequin choice, inventive instruments, and developer options whereas sustaining robust privateness, select Venice.ai. For an AI assistant with industry-leading privateness protections and seamless integration with the Proton ecosystem, select Lumo AI.
Lumo AI Assessment: The Proper Instrument For You?
After spending time with Lumo AI, I got here away impressed by how critically Proton approaches privateness with out sacrificing usability. I favored how straightforward it was to arrange my analysis with Tasks, analyze paperwork, and use Ghost Mode for short-term net searches that disappeared as soon as I closed the session. Nevertheless, whereas Lumo was usually quick and correct, I nonetheless discovered myself verifying necessary claims.
General, Lumo AI is finest for individuals who need an AI assistant they will belief with delicate info. If privateness is your high precedence, it’s one of many strongest choices accessible.
However for those who want probably the most superior AI capabilities for advanced reasoning, coding, or inventive work, chances are you’ll wish to take into account one in all these alternate options:
- Duck.ai is finest for individuals who need a free, nameless AI chatbot with entry to a number of AI fashions and no account required.
- Kagi is finest for individuals who need a personal, ad-free search engine with AI search and analysis instruments.
- Venice.ai is finest for creators and builders who need superior AI fashions, picture and video era, and versatile privateness controls.
Thanks for studying my Lumo AI evaluate! I hope you discovered it useful. Strive Lumo for your self (you don’t even want an account) and see the way you prefer it!
Incessantly Requested Questions
Is Lumo pretty much as good as ChatGPT?
Lumo just isn’t as highly effective as ChatGPT for advanced duties, but it surely presents a lot stronger privateness protections. It really works nicely for on a regular basis writing and notes, although it might not match main AI fashions for superior reasoning or inventive duties.
Is Lumo AI actually personal?
Sure, Lumo is designed to be rather more personal than most AI assistants. It makes use of encrypted chats, doesn’t gather your information for promoting, and doesn’t use your conversations to coach AI fashions.
Who owns Lumo AI?
Lumo AI is made by Proton, the Swiss firm behind privateness providers like Proton Mail and Proton VPN.
Is Lumo a protected AI to make use of?
Sure, Lumo by Proton is a protected AI assistant targeted on privateness. It makes use of zero-access encryption, doesn’t use your chats to coach AI fashions, and is protected by Swiss privateness legal guidelines.
Is Lumo any good?
Lumo AI is a good alternative if privateness is your essential concern, but it surely will not be the most suitable choice for those who want probably the most superior AI capabilities from instruments like ChatGPT or Claude. Many individuals admire its robust safety features, however some really feel its efficiency nonetheless falls behind main AI assistants.
The place is Lumo AI from?
Lumo AI was created by Proton, the Swiss firm behind providers targeted on privateness like Proton Mail and Proton VPN. It was constructed by Proton’s European machine studying crew and launched in July 2025.