The Most Private Email Client with AI
You shouldn't have to choose between privacy and intelligence. Inboxed runs AI entirely on your Mac, so you get smart email without sacrificing a single byte of privacy.
The Problem
AI vs Privacy trade-off
Every "smart" email app requires cloud processing — meaning your emails are read by servers.
Data harvesting
Free email clients monetize your data. Paid ones still use cloud AI processing.
No transparency
Most apps don't disclose what happens to your email data during AI processing.
How Inboxed Solves This
Verifiably local
Inboxed uses Apple MLX to run AI models directly on your Mac's GPU. No network calls for AI features.
No telemetry
No analytics, no usage tracking, no crash reporting that sends your data anywhere.
Open architecture
Built with Rust and Tauri — inspect the network traffic yourself. Nothing phones home.
Key Features for Privacy-Focused Users
Frequently Asked Questions
What does 'local AI' actually mean from a privacy standpoint?
When an email client uses cloud AI — OpenAI, Google Gemini, or a proprietary model running on a vendor's servers — your email content is transmitted to that server, processed there, and the result is returned. This means a third party has access to the content of your messages, even if they claim not to store it. Inboxed uses Apple MLX to run AI models directly on your Mac's GPU. Nothing is transmitted for AI processing — the model runs on your hardware, your data stays local. In 2025, as data sovereignty law tightens globally and local AI infrastructure matures, this distinction has moved from niche concern to mainstream requirement.
How does Inboxed handle email sync — does it send data anywhere?
Inboxed syncs your email via IMAP, which is the standard protocol used by every major email provider. That sync connection is between your Mac and your email provider (Gmail, Fastmail, iCloud, etc.) — the same connection that exists with any email client. Inboxed itself does not operate relay servers, does not aggregate user data, and does not process your email content on its own infrastructure. The AI runs locally via Apple MLX. The privacy question is really about your email provider — if you use Gmail, Google still holds your mail server-side. For maximum privacy, pair Inboxed with a provider like Proton Mail (via Proton Bridge) or Fastmail.
How does Inboxed compare to Proton Mail's native app or Tutanota?
ProtonMail and Tutanota are end-to-end encrypted email providers with their own apps — they protect data at rest and in transit on their servers, and are the gold standard for content-level email privacy. Inboxed is a different layer: it is a local Mac client that processes AI features on-device rather than in a cloud. These approaches are complementary. ProtonMail via Proton Bridge works as an IMAP source for Inboxed, giving you encrypted provider-side storage plus local AI processing. If you are already on Proton or Tutanota and want to stay there, Inboxed does not replace that stack — it can sit on top of it.
Is Inboxed open source, and how can I verify its privacy claims?
Inboxed is not currently open source, which is a legitimate limitation for users who require auditable code. The privacy claims rest on the architectural approach — Apple MLX processes AI locally, there is no cloud relay in the application layer — and on Apple's platform-level enforcement of app sandbox rules on macOS. For users who require fully auditable software, open-source options like Thunderbird with local plugins exist as an alternative. Inboxed is honest about this limitation. The practical privacy floor it offers — no cloud AI processing, no vendor data aggregation — is meaningfully higher than most mainstream email clients, even without open-source verification.