Today, take it slow.
A few lines is enough. When you're done, Lantern gently asks a question or two, helps you look back at what you said, and remembers the people and things you mention.
For iPhone · iOS 26 or later
After you write, your entry is sent to AI to help (mainly Anthropic’s Claude, with Google’s Gemini when needed). How your data is handled
In the Write tabAlways free
Open Lanternote and there’s a blank page: “How was your day? Write whatever comes to mind.” A few lines is enough, and it’s fine to write a lot or a little. It saves automatically as you go.
Lanternote is an AI journal for iPhone, but you’re always the one writing. While you write, AI stays out of sight and no suggestions pop up. Just writing and saving drafts never sends anything to AI. Once you sign in, drafts are encrypted and synced just like finished entries. When you’re ready, tap Done.
Write › After you tap DonePLUS · First week free
When you tap Done, Lanternote first checks that you’re safe, then reads what you wrote and gently asks a question or two.
“Nicely done. Want to think about it a little more?”
Reflecting after you write can start with just a question or two. The questions grow out of your own words, like: “In that moment, what came to mind first?” To answer, tap Answer and type or dictate, and your answer is saved with the entry. If you’d rather not, tap Skip.
Want to think a little more? Tap Talk a bit more and Lantern asks one more, for up to two more rounds.
Lantern only asks questions. It doesn’t give advice, diagnose, or draw conclusions for you. Questions you didn’t answer stay with that entry, so you can come back to them whenever something comes to mind.
In the Memory tabPLUS · First week free
When you finish, you’ll see “I’ll remember these.” Lanternote remembers up to three things worth keeping from each entry, like the people and pets you mention or things you want to do, each with the date and your own words. Tap the source to open that entry with the sentence highlighted. The next time Lantern asks you something, it can pick up on what you’ve said.
“Things remembered from your entries. You can edit or delete them.”
You can edit or delete any of them. Deleted one by mistake? Tap Undo right away. Deleted memories won’t be remembered again. If you don’t want anything remembered from an entry, tap Don’t remember these on the screen after you finish.
In Settings, you can stop remembering a whole category, and Lantern won’t use it when asking you questions:
You can also turn Memory off entirely, and either keep what’s already remembered or delete it all. Entries with safety concerns never create memories.
Remembering new things is part of PLUS (free in your first week). Viewing, editing, and deleting what’s already remembered is always available.
In the Write tab › DictateAlways free
When you don’t feel like typing, tap Dictate and talk to your iPhone. Lanternote uses Apple’s speech recognition, built into your iPhone, to turn your voice into text and save it as a draft you can edit. Recordings are never uploaded or saved.
Want to use it as a voice journal? Go ahead: it’s free, with no minute limits. You can also dictate when you answer Lantern’s questions or write a guided journal.
The Quick note shortcut on your iPhone adds a line to today’s draft without using AI. You can also say to Siri, “Add a quick note in Lanternote” (what you say to Siri is handled by Apple’s Siri). The Write an entry, Dictate an entry, and Guided journal shortcuts open the app so you can start writing right away. There’s nothing to set up: they show up in the Shortcuts app and in Spotlight, and on an iPhone with an Action button, you can assign one to it.
In the Journal tabAlways free
When you finish, you can pick what “Today felt like…”: Sunny, Partly cloudy, Cloudy, Rainy, or Stormy. Or skip it, that’s fine too. You choose the weather yourself; AI won’t guess it for you. If you’d like a simple mood journal, marking today’s weather is all it takes.
In Lanternote’s Journal tab, the calendar has one square per day, marked with the weather you picked, and shows how many days you’ve written this month. Tap a day to read what you wrote, or go back month by month.
Looking for something? Tap the magnifying glass in the top-right corner of the Journal tab. Exact-word search runs only on your iPhone and covers your entries, prompts, and answers, with matches highlighted. Below that, it lists up to 5 “Similar entries”, so you might find what you’re looking for even if you used different words at the time. For this, only what you type is sent, and matching happens on your iPhone. Without an internet connection, this part isn’t shown.
In the Journal tabPLUS · First week free
“What do you want to ask your journal?” For example: “When have I felt best lately?” “Who have I been mentioning a lot?” “What have I said I want to do?”
Lanternote answers only from what you’ve written, with quotes marked “From your journal”. Tap one to open that entry. No advice. When you ask, your question and the few most relevant entries are sent to AI. The question itself gets a safety check first, and entries with safety concerns are never used.
Write on two days in the same week (Monday to Sunday), and you’ll get a recap: how many days, entries, and words you wrote, the week’s weather, what came up this week, how you felt, and the people and pets you mentioned. What came up and how you felt are told in your own words, with quotes. At the end there’s “Something to think about”. If you’d like to write about it, tap Write about this.
If you use Lanternote as a feelings journal, the weekly recap won’t pass judgment. It simply puts what you said this week side by side so you can see it. To put it together, that week’s entries are sent to AI. Entries with safety concerns are left out, and the finished recap is stored only on your iPhone.
In the Write tabAlways free
Some nights you open it and don’t know where to begin. Tap Need a question to start? and a small prompt appears, like “Did anything someone said stay with you today?” If it doesn’t fit, tap Another question, or close it. Prompts come from a fixed set on your iPhone, not from AI.
Or try one of Lanternote’s guided journals: “One question at a time. Take it slow. When you’re done, it’s saved as an entry.”
A minute to think about today
If you’d like to journal in the morning, three questions is all it takes. The first:
“What’s the one thing you most want to get done today?”
Look back on today
The first question picks up on what you wrote that morning:
“This morning you wanted to get ‘…’ done. How did it go?”
Hold on to the small good parts of today
Want to keep a gratitude journal? Start with three good things.
“And a second one? Even the tiniest thing counts.”
When something feels stuck
Four questions, one at a time. The last one:
“If a good friend went through the same thing, what would you say to them?”
In Journal and SettingsAlways free
“Want a daily reminder to write a little?” Lanternote can remind you at 8:30 a.m. to take a minute to think about today, and at 9:30 p.m. to look back. You can change both times. On days you’ve already written, it won’t keep reminding you. If you only did the Morning check-in, you’ll still get one reminder in the evening.
Reminders are local notifications on your iPhone. They never show what you wrote, only a few set lines, like “Write a few lines before bed, then let today go.” There are no streaks and nothing to check in to. It’s okay to skip a day.
In Settings, you can export all your entries, in date order, into one file: Markdown (.md) or plain text (.txt). You can choose to include questions from Lantern, your answers, and what was remembered. The file is created on your iPhone and never passes through our servers. Save it to Files, or send it to your computer to keep.
How your data is handled
A journal is deeply personal. Here’s a plain explanation of where Lanternote keeps it and when it’s sent anywhere. You can also open the “How your data is handled” page from the app’s welcome screen and from Settings.
Your iPhone
Writing and saving drafts happen here. Nothing is sent to AI.
Our servers
Google Cloud, Taiwan region
Content is used only while handling the request. We don’t keep the content of requests or replies.
Mainly Anthropic’s Claude, with Google’s Gemini when needed. May be processed outside Taiwan.
Once you sign in
Your entries (including unfinished drafts) are encrypted and synced from your iPhone to Google Cloud in Taiwan (asia-east1), so they’re still there when you switch phones.
Gemini is also used for a second safety check, and to turn each entry and memory into vectors so you can find entries with a similar meaning. Vectors are encrypted and synced just like your entries, and deleted along with them. When you search, only what you type is sent.
Anthropic deletes inputs and outputs from its back end within 30 days; only if its automated safety systems flag them as potentially violating its usage policy may they be kept for up to 2 years. Google’s caching is turned off; only if Google’s automated safety checks find that a request may involve abuse may Google keep it, for up to 90 days.
After you write, your entry is sent to AI to help (mainly Anthropic’s Claude, with Google’s Gemini when needed). Where it’s stored, where it goes, and how long it’s kept are all covered in the privacy policy.
Privacy Policy
Before asking any questions, Lanternote first checks each entry to see whether you’re safe. The same goes for every answer and every question you ask in Ask my journal. This is an automated check, not a medical or professional assessment.
If there’s reason to worry, Lantern won’t ask you any more questions. Depending on the result, it shows a gentle response instead, or opens the care screen with helplines right away. Below the gentle response, there’s always a “Want to talk to someone?” link that takes you to the helplines. The words on the care screen are fixed and written by people, not generated by AI on the spot:
“You don’t have to be alone right now. If someone is nearby, you can ask them to stay with you.”
The app shows crisis lines for your region where we’ve verified them. Elsewhere, it links to findahelpline.com and reminds you of your local emergency number. If you’re in immediate danger, call your local emergency number.
We won’t notify any person or organization because of it. The safety check and this screen are always free, and they keep working even after you reach the daily AI limit. Entries with safety concerns never create memories and aren’t used in Weekly recap or Ask my journal.
Lanternote is not a medical or mental health counseling service. If you need help, please contact a professional.
Writing is always free.
Downloading and writing cost nothing.
“Everything is unlocked for 7 days from the first time you use an AI feature. You can decide later.”
No subscription needed. The start date is recorded on our server, so reinstalling the app with the same Apple Account doesn’t restart it. If a week begins during those 7 days, that week’s recap is free too.
“Write a little each day. See yourself more clearly.”
The App Store shows the price in your local currency. Renews automatically. Cancel anytime in the App Store.
Payment is handled entirely by Apple, and we can’t see your payment information. AI features have a daily fair-use limit. Prices vary by region; the App Store shows them in your local currency. Terms of Use · Privacy Policy
Downloading and writing are free. Your first week is free too: for 7 days from the first time you use an AI feature, every AI feature is available, no subscription needed. After that, to keep getting questions from Lantern, new memories, Weekly recap, and Ask my journal, you can subscribe to Lanternote PLUS, monthly or yearly. The App Store shows the price in your local currency. Subscriptions renew automatically, and you can cancel anytime in the App Store. Writing, dictation, search, export, reminders, and the safety check and helplines screen are always free.
No. You write your journal yourself. Lantern never rewrites your words, and no suggestions pop up while you write. Only after you tap “Done” does Lantern gently ask a question or two. If you want to keep going, tap “Talk a bit more”, for up to two more rounds. It also remembers what you’ve said, each memory with a quote from the original entry, so its questions later can pick up where you left off.
Just writing or saving a draft doesn’t send anything to AI. Once you sign in, drafts are encrypted and synced just like finished entries. When you tap “Done”, the entry and a few related memories go through our servers in Google Cloud’s Taiwan region to an AI provider: mainly Anthropic’s Claude, with Google’s Gemini when needed. This happens even if you’re not signed in. The AI first checks that you’re safe, then comes up with questions and notes what to remember. When you answer Lantern’s questions, tap “Talk a bit more”, get a weekly recap, use Ask my journal, or when entries are turned into vectors (to find entries with a similar meaning), the content needed is sent as well. Our servers don’t keep the content of these requests. Under Anthropic’s Commercial Terms of Service, it doesn’t use this content to train its models; according to Google, it doesn’t either without permission. AI processing may happen outside Taiwan, and the providers have their own retention rules. The details are in the privacy policy.
Your journal is saved on your iPhone first. You can write without signing in; your entries then stay only on this iPhone, and deleting the app deletes them too. Once you sign in with Apple, they’re encrypted and stored on our servers in Google Cloud’s Taiwan region for syncing, so you can get them back when you switch phones. Each account has its own encryption key (AES-256-GCM), which is in turn protected by Google Cloud KMS. You can also export all your entries in Settings as a Markdown or plain text file. The file is created on your iPhone and never passes through our servers.
Yes, for free, with no minute limits. Apple’s speech recognition, built into your iPhone, turns your voice into text. Recordings are never uploaded or saved. You can edit the text first, and from then on it’s just like a typed entry.
After you write, Lantern remembers things worth keeping, like the people and pets you mention or things you want to do, each with the date and a quote from the original entry. You can view, edit, or delete them anytime, and deleted memories won’t be remembered again. You can turn off categories you don’t want remembered (like Money), or turn off Memory entirely. If you don’t want anything remembered from a particular entry, tap “Don’t remember these”. Entries with safety concerns never create memories.
Lanternote is not a medical or mental health counseling service and can’t replace professional help. Before asking questions about any entry, it first checks whether you’re safe. If there’s reason to worry, Lantern won’t ask you any more questions and shows a gentle response or helplines instead. You can also tap “Want to talk to someone?” to see helplines. The app shows crisis lines for your region where we’ve verified them; elsewhere, it links to findahelpline.com and reminds you of your local emergency number. This is an automated check, and we won’t notify anyone because of it. The safety check and this screen are always free.
Once you’re signed in, you can delete your account and all data in the app’s Settings, and you’ll be asked to confirm once more with Apple. Entries, answers, memories, and vectors in the cloud and on this iPhone are all deleted, and the Sign in with Apple authorization is revoked as well. This can’t be undone. Subscriptions must be canceled separately in the App Store. To work out when your free first week started, we keep a hash that can’t be reversed and the time of your first use. It contains no content and isn’t linked to your account, so it isn’t deleted along with your account. If you’d like it deleted, just email us. Content already sent to AI providers is deleted according to the retention rules in the privacy policy.
Lanternote is currently only for iPhone and requires iOS 26 or later. There’s no Android version. It isn’t out yet; it’s planned for the App Store in most regions worldwide (except mainland China).
Today, take it slow.
And tomorrow night, a few more lines, if you like.
Coming soon to the App StoreFor iPhone · iOS 26 or later
If you have any questions or suggestions, email support@edgelingo.com.
Lanternote is made by EdgeLingo, a one-person studio in Taiwan.
You can cancel anytime on your iPhone in Settings > Apple Account > Subscriptions. While you’re subscribed, you can also get there from the app’s Settings › Manage subscription.
Once you’re signed in, you can delete your account and all data in Settings in the app. Settings is in the top-right corner of the Journal tab, and you’ll confirm once more with Apple. Entries, answers, memories, and vectors in the cloud and on this iPhone are all deleted, and the Sign in with Apple authorization is revoked as well. This can’t be undone. Subscriptions must be canceled separately in the App Store.
The free-first-week record isn’t linked to your account, so it isn’t deleted with it. If you’d like it deleted, please email us. If you’re not signed in, your journal is stored only on this iPhone, and deleting the app deletes it too. Content already sent to AI providers is deleted according to the retention rules in the privacy policy.
How your journal is stored, where it goes, and how long it’s kept are all in the privacy policy.
