Comparison

Privacy AI vs microAI

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Privacy AI

This app offers a powerful AI fiction studio for writing novels, an AI character roleplay studio, and the ability to run various AI models locally or remotely. It includes extensive tools for content processing, voice generation, and AI agents, with full accessibility features.

Highlights
  • AI fiction novel writing studio
  • AI character roleplay studio
  • Run local and remote AI models
  • AI agents and 40+ built-in tools
  • On-device and cloud voice generation
  • Convert and export various file types
  • Full VoiceOver and haptic feedback support
Features
Read full description

Privacy AI is an all-in-one AI toolkit for every kind of model: local language models (GGUF, MLX, Core AI), speech recognition, text-to-speech and image models, Apple's own models, and the major cloud providers. Chat, run agents, transcribe meetings and create images with 60+ tools. Local models work fully offline, and most file types convert to Markdown that AI can read. Made for iPhone Duo - Unfold it and lists sit beside their details - Meetings: the live transcript on the top half, your notes on the bottom half - Half-folded, the split lands on the fold and the controls stay clear of the keyboard - Doc Scanner shows recognized text beside the original page - Reader keeps an article beside your chat about it; AI edits sit next to your text - Half-folded, Home, Help and settings keep content off the crease - Two Privacy AI windows in Split View, like a meeting beside a chat, also on iPad Meetings - Record meetings and lectures for an on-device transcript with speaker labels - Get minutes, lecture notes or your own summaries, linked to the moments they quote - Lock Screen controls; export SRT, VTT or Markdown Games - Adventure: a fantasy campaign with an AI party and narrator - Werewolf: a social deduction table of AI players Create Images on Your Device - FLUX.2 Klein and Stable Diffusion models, free with no API key - Import your own fine-tunes, plus SDXL and LoRAs on Mac Run Models Locally or in the Cloud - On-device GGUF and MLX models, with vision and tool-calling - Apple's on-device and Private Cloud Compute models, with no account or API key - Connect to OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, DeepSeek, or any OpenAI-compatible server Agent - Give it a goal: it plans, calls tools and delivers a written report - Teach it with Skills: folders of instructions and scripts Chat - Smart Chat routes each message by complexity and keeps sensitive text local System Keyboard - Dictate, rewrite, translate and proofread text in any app - Types in 11 languages with Pinyin, Japanese and Korean input Mini Apps - Doc Scanner: PDFs, photos and scans to clean Markdown, tables intact - Email Assistant: triage any IMAP inbox on device - Knowledge Wiki: cited answers from your own documents - LLM Council: ask several models at once and get one answer - Topic Briefing: dated, sourced briefs on topics you follow Tools and Connectors - 60+ built-in tools: web, news and paper search, calendar, code and more - Google Drive, MCP with a marketplace, Siri and Shortcuts Writing and Voice - Novel Writer drafts outlines and chapters - Text to Audio: documents read aloud by on-device voices - Voice Clone: a voice from a short recording or a description Files and Accessibility - Convert PDFs, Office files, e-books, archives, emails and media to Markdown, with OCR - VoiceOver throughout, including both games - View Assistant: point the camera and hear what is in front of you Free to Use. No Ads. Local model features are free, including the AI keyboard, 60+ tools, games and on-device image generation. Cloud API models, Google Drive and the MCP marketplace need a subscription. Privacy by Design Privacy AI runs on-device. No backend servers. No accounts. No data collection. Every API request is visible in the Protocol Inspector. Your models. Your device. Your data. Terms of Use: https://privacyai.acmeup.com/docs/policy/tos.html Privacy Policy: https://privacyai.acmeup.com/docs/policy/privacy.html

About

microAI

This app provides a private, local AI workspace that organizes your thoughts, projects, and files. It allows you to run AI chat on your device, manage AI models, and build a personal memory system for enhanced productivity and offline use.

Highlights
  • Private Memory Map
  • Local AI Chat
  • Long-Term Memory
  • Projects With Context
  • Chat With Local Files
  • Private Journal
  • GGUF Model Management
Features
Read full description

AI ON YOUR PHONE. POWERED BY YOUR DEVICES. Run private AI directly on your phone. Need more power? Connect your own computer and let it handle the heavy AI work while you keep using microAI from your phone. No sign-up. No cloud AI account required. Ask questions. Talk instead of type. Show AI a photo. Read a file. Work on a project. Save something for later. microAI brings local AI, your devices, and your private context together in one workspace. YOUR PHONE. YOUR COMPUTER. YOUR AI. Your phone can run compatible local AI models on its own. When you need more power, connect your own computer. Scan a QR code and your approved Mac or browser can run the model while you continue using microAI from your phone. That means you can move heavier AI work off your phone—reducing the load, heat, and battery use caused by demanding on-device inference. Use your phone when that is enough. Use your computer when you want more power. You choose where your AI runs. NO SIGN-UP. NO CLOUD AI REQUIRED. Local AI should not require another account. microAI can run compatible models directly on your devices without requiring a cloud AI account. Your computer can also become your own AI compute node. Open the microAI website on your computer, load a compatible local model, scan the QR code, and connect. No separate website account is required. DIFFERENT AI FOR DIFFERENT JOBS Not every task needs the same AI. microAI includes task-focused AI helpers: • Private Chat — Ask, write, plan, brainstorm, or talk. • Image Chat — Ask questions about photos and screenshots. • Voice Chat — Talk instead of typing. • Review Writer — Turn your experience into a clear review. • Photo Tagger — Create titles, descriptions, and keywords for photos. Choose which compatible model powers each job. Use a small model for quick everyday tasks, a vision model for images, or a stronger model running on your computer when you need more capability. TALK. SEE. READ. AI should work with more than a text box. Talk naturally with Voice Chat. Add a photo or screenshot and ask questions about what you see. Add a supported PDF, TXT, or Markdown file and ask questions about its contents. Use microAI for writing, research, documents, photos, ideas, and everyday questions. COME BACK WITHOUT STARTING OVER Your useful context should not disappear into old chats. Create Projects to keep related conversations, files, instructions, and context together. Save quick thoughts in Journal. microAI can remember useful context and bring it back when relevant. Memory Map gives you a visual way to explore your conversations, projects, journals, models, and memories. LOCAL AI WITHOUT THE USUAL SETUP You should not need to be an AI engineer to start using local AI. Find a compatible model, download it, and start. microAI keeps model discovery, downloads, switching, and resource management in one place. Advanced users can also import compatible GGUF models. Actual performance depends on your device, model, and connection. YOUR AI. YOUR DEVICES. YOUR DATA. When AI runs on your phone, compatible models process requests directly on your device. When you connect your own computer, the model runs on the computer you approve while you continue using microAI from your phone. Your model files stay on the device running them. You decide when a remote compute node is connected and used. Internet access may still be required for model discovery and downloads, purchases, ratings, app services, and certain system features. RUN AI YOUR WAY. On your phone when you want portability. On your computer when you want more power. No sign-up. No cloud AI account required. Your AI. Your devices. Your choice. Want to use your computer with microAI? Visit: https://linklocalai.com/ By using microAI, you agree to Apple's Standard End User License Agreement (EULA). Apple EULA: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

Privacy AI4 screens
microAI4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is rating: microAI at 5.0 against Privacy AI's 4.8. microAI also leads on iOS requirement (16.4 vs 18.0). Privacy AI's advantage is ratings volume (20 vs 2). On price, update cadence, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Privacy AI sells 3 in-app purchases, starting at $3.99 per 7 days and microAI sells 4 in-app purchases, starting at $0.99 per month. Whichever you choose, the download price is not the number that matters.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

microAI holds the better App Store score, 5.0 against 4.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Privacy AI has 20 ratings behind it against 2, so its average is the more settled of the two.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Privacy AI ships an update weekly, microAI every 9 days. The most recent releases landed on October 30, 2026 and October 28, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard3 real differences · 7 level
Privacy AI versus microAI: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterPrivacy AImicroAI
PriceFreeFree
Rating4.8 (20 ratings)5.0 (2 ratings) — better
Positive reviews92.3% of reviews—
Number of ratings20 — better2
Update frequencyWeekly — betterEvery 9 days
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesYesYes
MonetizationFree with in-app purchasesFree with in-app purchases
DevicesiPhone, iPadiPhone, Mac
Requires iOS18.016.4 — better
Further details — not scored
Size3.4 GB234 MB
Age rating17+9+
DeveloperAcmeUp Inc.genghong Xie

Customer experience

Privacy AI

All ratings20 ratings
Positive95.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative5.0%
Written reviews13 reviews
Positive92.3%
Neutral0.0%
Negative7.7%

microAI

All ratings2 ratings
Positive100.0%
Neutral0.0%
Negative0.0%

In-app purchases

3 purchases

Privacy AI

Subscriptions3
  • Weekly Pro Plan$3.997 Days
  • Monthly Pro Plan$9.991 Month
  • Yearly Pro Plan$99.991 Year
4 purchases

microAI

Subscriptions2
  • microAI Pro – Monthly$0.991 Month
  • microAI Pro – Yearly7 Days trial$5.991 Year
One-time2
  • Remove Ads$4.99
  • microAI Pro – Lifetime$9.99

Questions

Is Privacy AI free?
Privacy AI is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Is microAI free?
microAI is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Privacy AI or microAI?
microAI is rated higher. Privacy AI averages 4.8 out of 5 from 20 ratings, while microAI averages 5.0 from 2 ratings.
Do Privacy AI or microAI have ads?
Neither Privacy AI nor microAI shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Privacy AI or microAI?
Privacy AI ships an update weekly, and microAI every 9 days. Most recently, Privacy AI was updated on October 30, 2026 and microAI on October 28, 2026.

Other comparisons