Lumo vs. The Rest: Who’s Really Building a Private AI Assistant?
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AI assistants are multiplying faster than “coming soon” blockchain startups did in 2017, and most of them share one ugly truth: your prompts aren’t just answers waiting to happen – they’re fuel for someone else’s machine-learning pipeline. The marketing calls it improvement. I call it unpaid labour, with a side of surveillance. Proton’s Lumo claims to be different. No chat logging, zero-access encryption, open-source models, servers in Europe. Sounds great on the tin. But this isn’t the first time a privacy-first label has been slapped on an AI assistant, as in something that leaks like a sieve. So, let’s see how Lumo stacks up against the other so-called “private” assistants – first on the free tiers, then the paid ones.
The Free Tier Reality Check
This is where most people dip a toe in: no money down, no long-term ties, and usually some invisible cost in the form of your data. The privacy crowd plays a little differently, but “free” can still mean a lot of things.
Lumo (Free Account) You get 100 chats a week, all encrypted and stored in a way even Proton can’t read. File analysis works, web search is off by default, and it clicks neatly into Proton Mail and Proton Drive. Downsides? When you hit the cap, you’re done until the counter resets – no rollover, no mercy.
Duck.ai DuckDuckGo’s assistant feels like a natural extension of their search: anonymous, no logs, no account needed. That’s great for quick hits, but it can’t handle files and doesn’t save history. Perfect for fast, forgettable questions, less so for anything you want to revisit.
Brave Leo (Free in Brave) If you live in the Brave browser, Leo’s there waiting. No saved chats unless you want them, no hard weekly cap, but you can’t take it outside the browser and there’s no proper file handling. Feels less like a standalone assistant and more like a very smart address bar.
Le Chat (Mistral) Generous free use, ephemeral by default, and browser-friendly. File handling is basic. It’s the most “pure model” of the bunch – no built-in search, no fancy integrations, just answers. Feels like it’s still learning to walk in some areas, but promising.
Jan (Local) Runs entirely on your machine. No limits beyond what your CPU or GPU can chew through, full history control, file support if your model allows it, and zero cloud involvement. The catch? You have to set it up yourself, and it likes hardware with some muscle.
Free Verdict
If you want something easy, private, and with a bit of memory, Lumo’s free tier wins on balance. Duck AI is unbeatable for quick, anonymous one-offs. Jan is for the self-sufficient – if you’re happy to tinker, it’s the purest form of “no one sees my data but me.”
The Paid Tier Showdown
Paying for privacy is where expectations rise: you want the limits gone, you want extra features, and you definitely want the company to keep its hands off your data.
Lumo Plus (~$12.99/month) Unlimited chats, extended encrypted history, bigger file uploads, unlimited favourites. Same privacy guarantees as the free tier, still no default web search, and it plays well with Proton’s other tools. The gap? No plugins, no voice mode, and not as flashy as GPT-4o or Claude 3.5.
Duck.ai No paid tier. What you see is what you get – and that’s fine, but it means you can’t “buy” your way to more features.
Brave Leo Premium (~$14.99/month) Higher rate limits and priority access for heavy users. Still browser-bound, still no serious file handling, and always-on search via Brave Search. It’s built for Brave lifers, not the wider world.
Le Chat Premium (~€20/year) Faster responses, higher daily limits, basic document handling. Still no direct search, still a stripped-down model interface, but cheap for what it offers.
Jan Still free – you just pay for better hardware if you want it faster. No subscriptions, no cloud dependency.
Paid Verdict
Lumo Plus is the most rounded “paid privacy” package here. Brave Leo Premium makes sense if you’re already all-in on Brave, Le Chat Premium is good value for lighter needs, and Jan… well, if you’re comfortable upgrading your rig, you already know you don’t need to pay a subscription.
My Take, No Sugar
Most AI assistants sell convenience by quietly selling you out. This shortlist is different – or at least trying to be. Lumo’s strength is that it’s designed from the ground up for Proton’s crowd: privacy purists who want functionality without compromising their principles. It’s not trying to be the Swiss Army knife of AI. It’s more like a solid, single-purpose tool you know won’t betray you when you’re not looking.
Duck.ai is the quick-draw answer box. Brave Leo is for the browser-loyal. Le Chat is the budget-friendly up-and-comer. And Jan is the “you don’t get to touch my data because it never leaves my machine” option.
Lumo doesn’t win every category, but in the one that matters most here – actual, enforceable privacy – it’s in the lead.
It remains to be seen how reliable these AI assistants prove in the long run. As a guy skeptical of the hype, I’ll keep an eye on this.
Quick FAQ
- Can I use Lumo without signing up?
- Yes, but you’ll be limited to a handful of questions and nothing gets saved.
- Is Lumo’s paid tier worth it?
- If you hit the 100-chat cap often or need bigger file uploads, yes. Otherwise, the free tier might be enough.
- Which is the most private option here?
- Jan, if you can handle local setup. Lumo, if you want privacy without the DIY overhead.
- What’s the catch with Duck.ai?
- It’s great for quick, anonymous use, but it can’t handle files or save history.
