What 'private' and 'local-first' actually mean
Most planning apps are cloud-first: your priorities, your calendar, and the people you care about live on a company's servers, synced from your devices. That is convenient, and it is also a copy of your life held somewhere you do not control.
Local-first flips the default. Your data lives on your machine as the primary copy. asambl stores your notes and plans on your computer as plain, portable files you can read, back up, and move without asking anyone's permission.
Where does AI fit without uploading your life?
This is the question that matters, and the honest answer has a boundary. asambl does not upload your data. When AI is switched on, only the prompt for that specific request — your question plus the small slice of notes needed to answer it — goes to asambl's managed AI endpoint, and it is not stored long-term.
Search and matching run on your own device. AI can be switched off entirely, and the rest of asambl keeps working. The intelligence is a tool you point at your data, not a service your data lives inside.
What to look for in a private planner
- Local-first storage: your data lives on your device as the primary copy, ideally in a portable, readable format
- A clear AI boundary: it should state exactly what leaves your machine, and when
- An off switch: you can disable AI and still use the app
- Narrow integrations: it connects to the one calendar you choose, not your whole account
- Portability: you can export and leave without losing your data
How asambl draws the line
asambl is a desktop app for macOS and Windows. Your vault of notes and plans stays on your machine, always. Calendar sync connects the single Google Calendar you choose, with read/write to that calendar and nothing else, and you can disconnect at any time.
When you want help, asambl drafts; you decide. Every proposed change is a draft you approve, amend, or discard. Privacy here is not a marketing claim bolted on at the end — it is the default the whole app is built around.