Council AI vs Cumbersome

Never trust just one AI. Ask the world's best 5 AI models the same question — see where they agree, where they disagree, and why it matters. Council AI consults OpenAI ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Anthropic Claude, Perplexity Sonar, and xAI Grok models simultaneously. When they all agree, you know you can trust the answer. When they don't, you've just found your blind spot. Three ways Council AI changes how you think: · Consensus in seconds. Ask any question. 5 models answer at once. Council AI shows their agreement so you instantly see what's reliable and what needs a closer look. No more wondering if one AI got it wrong. · Built-in bias detection. Forward any article, claim, or news story. Council AI analyzes it through multiple lenses — surfacing hidden biases, logical gaps, and unsupported claims that a single AI would miss. You'd be surprised what slips past even the top newspapers. · Structured AI debates. Can't decide what to believe? The Debater council argues both sides, delivers rebuttals, and summarizes — so you hear the strongest case for and against before you decide. Pre-built councils for every angle: Council AI comes with themed councils ready to go — Politics (Democrat, Republican, Libertarian), Pessimist/Optimist/Realist, Time/Money/Stress problem-solving, Parenting styles, and more. Or build your own custom council in seconds. Also includes: · Discover: curated question collections across science, history, culture, and politics — just tap and learn · Bored mode: fun, thought-provoking questions answered by your favorite council · Surprise me: get answers as poems, haikus, Shakespearean monologues, and other unexpected formats Start free. Upgrade when you're ready. Try Council AI with select models at no cost. Go Pro to unlock the world's best advanced models, unlimited questions, and every council. Perfect for anyone who refuses to take one AI's word for it. Made in California with love and sunshine. In-app subscriptions If you decide to subscribe to Council AI Pro, it will be applied to your iTunes account upon confirmation. Subscriptions will automatically renew unless canceled within 24 hours before the end of the current period. You can cancel anytime by visiting the ‘Manage Subscription’ section of your account. https://councilai.app/terms-of-service https://councilai.app/privacy-policy

IMPORTANT: Requires your own API keys from OpenAI, Anthropic, OpenRouter, Google AI Studio, Z.ai, or Vercel AI Gateway, or your own OpenAI-compatible endpoint. I built Cumbersome because consumer AI apps kept dumbing things down. Cumbersome is the manual transmission of AI apps: more complex, but with far greater control. WHY I BUILT THIS Consumer AI providers like ChatGPT and Claude route requests to cheaper models to keep their costs down. They charge monthly subscriptions whether you use them once or a thousand times. They hide the technical controls that let you tune how models respond. And they lock you into one provider. I wanted an AI client that connects directly to AI provider APIs. I wanted to pick exactly which model I use and know I'm getting it. I wanted to compare different models on the same prompt. I wanted to pay per use instead of subscriptions. So I built it. This is the app I use every day to interact with AI, so I pay attention and try to get it right. SUPPORTED PROVIDERS Bring your API keys, or add your own OpenAI-compatible endpoint, for any of the following: — ChatGPT / OpenAI — Claude / Anthropic — Gemini / Google AI Studio — OpenRouter multi-provider — Vercel AI Gateway multi-provider — Z.ai — OpenAI-compatible custom endpoints, including Ollama, Azure, LM Studio, Groq, Together, and self-hosted backends WHAT YOU GET — A free app. — A versatile API client. One app, every major provider and model. — Total control. Pick your model, tune the parameters, switch providers mid-conversation. — Compare models head to head. Stream multiple chats in parallel and let an AI judge pick the best. — Bring your own tools. Local browser use, reasoning, web search, image generation. — Rich, editable conversations. Markdown, LaTeX, code blocks, attachments, edit and export anything. — Private by design. iCloud sync across devices. Nothing saved to our servers. — Native and accessible on iPhone, iPad, and Mac. MAJOR FEATURES ADDED IN 2026 Highlights only. See What's New on the App Store for the latest. 2026-07-02: Chat appearance themes and reading fonts (Serif, Rounded, Mono). 2026-06-28: Folder-level system message presets. 2026-06-24: Prompt caching, with cache usage shown across providers. 2026-06-17: Reusable system message presets per conversation. 2026-06-16: Offload long system messages to iCloud Drive. 2026-06-15: Pause custom API parameters with a toggle. 2026-06-11: Compact a conversation to lower API costs. 2026-06-07: Run JavaScript and HTML directly from Cumbersome. 2026-06-04: Choose how OpenRouter parses PDFs and which search engine it uses. 2026-05-12: Configurable Quick Prompt shortcut and App Visibility on Mac. 2026-05-09: Conversation folders. Group, move, and organize chats. 2026-05-03: Collapsible sidebar sections, synced across devices. 2026-04-22: AI image generation with OpenAI and Gemini. 2026-04-18: Local browser tool use. AI can search and browse pages. 2026-04-11: Headless mode. The AI works the browser in the background. 2026-04-03: Searchable model picker for long model lists. 2026-03-15: Extended thinking and reasoning across providers. 2026-03-09: Auto-delete conversations after a set number of days. 2026-02-28: OpenAI-compatible custom providers (Ollama, Azure, LM Studio, Groq). 2026-02-25: Only Search When Requested. Keep web search off until you ask. 2026-02-24: Image paste, interactive attachment previews, and PDF thumbnails. 2026-02-21: Siri and Shortcuts integration. 2026-02-20: Vercel AI Gateway support, with model exclusion filters. 2026-02-06: Voice Control, Larger Text, and higher contrast. 2026-01-11: Major accessibility pass. VoiceOver, Dynamic Type, keyboard nav. 2026-01-06: OpenRouter multi-provider integration. THE DEAL The app is free. You pay providers directly for API access. I'm Peter, an indie developer in Reno, Nevada, out among the high desert tumbleweed. No VC money. No growth hacking. Just a tool I wanted to exist.