Inks Philosophy
The finished words are not the only part worth preserving.
A letter comes before its destination
Writing in Inks begins as something that belongs to you.
No recipient is required, and sealing a letter does not send it. The finished letter is saved on your device first. Keep it for yourself or choose to share it later.
Writing and sharing are separate because expression should not automatically become delivery.
Read the result first
Most of the time, what matters is what the letter finally says.
That is why a letter reopens on its finished content. The pauses, deletions, and rewrites are still there, quietly preserved until you choose to replay them.
The result belongs in everyday use. The process is an optional discovery. Preserving both is the long-term value.
Privacy should be concrete
We try to make privacy visible in specific product decisions:
- Letter content stays on your device by default and is not uploaded merely because you finished writing.
- Inks processes only the photos you select; it does not scan your library.
- Face ID and Touch ID are handled locally by the system.
- Analytics does not read letter content.
- Sharing starts only when you choose it.
Convenience is not a reason to cross those boundaries.
Payment and maintenance
Inks is not supported by advertising or the sale of user data.
The core writing loop remains free. Lifetime is for advanced local creation: pay once to keep advanced styling, stats, access controls, and official Lifetime resources. Inks Pass is for complete creation: while subscribed, it includes everything in Lifetime, plus tools to upload and manage your own writing resources, save reusable resources from imported letters, and use Pass-exclusive resources updated by Inks. Lifetime owners can subscribe at an exclusive price to receive the same access as the standard Inks Pass while active.
Building and maintaining a service has real costs. When we discuss pricing or access, we describe only what is currently available.
Your letters should remain yours
The .mbx format is designed to preserve a complete letter, keeping the body, writing process, attachments, and resources needed for reading together in one file. Inks already provides image, PDF, video, and Live Photo exports for different archival and sharing needs.
We will continue to support .mbx files that Inks has already created. Even if Inks is no longer maintained, we will provide a standalone reader that can be downloaded and used offline so the letter's core content—including text, images, and handwriting—remains viewable.
Password-protected letters will still require the original password, processed only on your device; neither the file nor the password will be uploaded for this purpose.
We do not want to become the gatekeeper of your memories. This commitment protects a file's long-term readability; to protect against losing the only copy to device damage or accidental deletion, keep your own .mbx, image, or PDF export of any letter that truly matters.
In the end
Inks does not try to explain your life for you.
It is here to receive a letter when you want to write—and, when you return, to give back what you left as faithfully as we can.