Questions, answered.
The things people ask before they sign in. Still stuck? Email [email protected].
Getting started
What is Distil Reads?
A single-player app for the things you mean to read later. You capture a video or web page from a browser extension; an AI turns it into a card — a summary, the key points, and a full read sized to the minutes you have — and it lands in a feed tuned to your current situation.
Is it really free?
Yes. Distil Reads is free and runs on your own AI key, so there is no bill from us. You pay your AI provider directly for what you use, which for most reading is a few cents.
What is “bring your own key”?
Instead of paying us a subscription to run the AI, you paste in your own DeepSeek or Anthropic API key. Distil Reads uses it only to summarize your captures. Your key is stored encrypted and never shown back to you. A managed plan where we run the AI for you is coming later.
Privacy
Is my reading private?
Completely. There are no followers, no public posts, and no social feed. Your captures, highlights, and notes are visible only to you.
Do you train AI on my data or sell it?
No. We do not train models on your content and we do not sell it. The only place your content goes is your chosen AI provider, to produce your summaries. See the Privacy Policy for detail.
How do I delete my data?
Email [email protected] and we will delete your account and everything attached to it.
Reading
What can I capture?
YouTube videos (from the transcript) and web pages and articles (the readable text is extracted for you). You capture from the browser extension in one click.
What is an Occasion?
The situation you’ll be in when you want to read something — Commute, Deep Work, Dinner, Winding Down. You tag a capture with an Occasion, then open that Occasion later and the feed is already curated for that moment. You can have as many as you like.
How does reading time work?
When you capture, you pick how long you want to spend — say 5, 15, or 30 minutes. Distil Reads writes the full read to fit that, and a focus timer paces you. A 40-minute talk can become an honest 15-minute read.
What are highlights and notes?
While reading you can highlight spans in meaningful colors — Main point, New insight, Contradiction — and pin a note in the margin, so a card becomes a marked-up study sheet you can scan later.
Is there a mobile app?
Distil Reads runs in the browser, and capturing uses a browser extension. The reading feed works wherever you can open the web app.