Legal
Privacy Policy
Last updated: April 2026
The short version: Gist does not collect, store, or transmit any of your personal data. We have no servers, no accounts, no analytics, and no tracking. Your text stays between you and whatever AI provider you choose — or never leaves your Mac at all if you use local AI.
What Gist accesses on your Mac
Gist requires certain macOS permissions to function. Here's what each one does and why:
Accessibility (required)
Gist uses the macOS Accessibility API to read the text you've selected in other apps and to replace it with the AI result. This only happens when you explicitly trigger Gist with your hotkey. Gist never reads your screen passively or monitors what you type.
Microphone (optional — only if you use voice dictation)
If you use the dictation feature (⌘⇧D), Gist accesses your microphone to transcribe your speech using Apple's on-device speech recognition. Audio is processed locally by macOS and is not sent to any external server. If you never use dictation, Gist never accesses your microphone.
Speech Recognition (optional — only if you use voice dictation)
Gist uses Apple's Speech framework for voice-to-text transcription. On Apple Silicon Macs, this runs entirely on-device. On Intel Macs, Apple may process speech on their servers per Apple's own privacy policy.
Apple Events / Automation (optional — only for Notes integration)
If you choose to send results to Apple Notes, Gist uses AppleScript to create the note. This only happens when you explicitly tap the Notes button.
How your text is processed
When you trigger Gist, the selected text is sent to the AI provider you have configured. There are two paths:
Cloud AI (Bring Your Own Key)
If you use Anthropic, OpenAI, or OpenRouter, your text is sent directly from your Mac to that provider's API using your own API key. Gist does not route your text through any intermediary server. We never see your text or your API key. The provider's own privacy policy governs how they handle your data.
Local AI (Ollama)
If you use the local AI option, your text is processed entirely on your Mac by a locally running AI model. Nothing leaves your device. No internet connection is required.
What we store on your device
Gist stores the following data locally on your Mac using macOS Keychain and UserDefaults:
- Your API keys (encrypted in macOS Keychain)
- Your preferences and settings
- Your command history (last 50 sessions)
- Your custom prompt templates
- Your hotkey configuration
None of this data is transmitted anywhere. It stays on your Mac. If you delete Gist, this data is removed.
What we do not do
- Collect analytics or telemetry
- Track app usage, crashes, or events
- Use any third-party analytics services
- Require user accounts or login
- Store your text on any server
- Sell, share, or monetise any data
- Use cookies (Gist is not a web app)
- Serve advertisements
Children's privacy
Gist does not knowingly collect any data from anyone, including children under 13.
Third-party services
Gist connects to third-party AI providers only when you explicitly configure an API key and trigger a command. These providers have their own privacy policies:
Gist also connects to ollama.com only during the one-click local AI install to download the Ollama binary and AI model files. No user data is sent during this download.
Changes to this policy
If we update this policy, we will post the changes on this page and update the date at the top.
Contact
If you have questions about this policy, email us at support@gistapp.io.