Proton's Lumo AI features focused on privacy

In recent years we have seen how the major assistants of Artificial Intelligence They have become part of our daily lives, but also how they have triggered the concerns about privacy and the use of our dataIn this context, Lumo by Proton appears, a proposal that wants to demonstrate that it is possible to enjoy modern AI without handing over your digital life to Big Tech or feeding models with sensitive information.

Lumo is not just “another chatbot”. It is a AI assistant designed from the ground up with privacy as its central focusintegrated into the Proton ecosystem (Proton Mail, Proton VPNProton (Proton Drive, Proton Pass, etc.) features zero-access encryption, no server logs, and infrastructure in European data centers. Furthermore, Proton has incorporated specific features such as encrypted projects, Ghost Mode, and integration with Proton Drive. apps open-source mobile devices that make Lumo a very solid tool for personal and professional use.

What is Proton's Lumo and what is its focus?

Lumo is a conversational artificial intelligence assistant developed by ProtonThe Swiss company, known for its privacy-focused services like Proton Mail and Proton VPN, was founded, according to the company itself, as a response to the first wave of tools for Generative AI where the user, their conversations and their documents have ended up becoming the product.

Unlike other commercial chatbots, Lumo was built on a very clear premise: AI should work for the user, not monitor them.. That translates to No conversation logs are stored on the serversYour messages and files are not used to train models, and all interactions are protected with zero-access encryption, so not even Proton can read them.

Proton insists that Lumo is a service designed to enable the use of AI even with sensitive informationLegal documents, internal company reports, personal notes, health information, or confidential conversations that you might not dare share on other services. By removing chat logs from the server and blocking the use of your data for training purposes, the risk of leaks or the reappearance of sensitive data in responses to third parties is minimized.

Another important point is that Lumo is fully integrated into the Proton privacy ecosystemIt operates under the umbrella of the Proton Foundation, a non-profit organization that funds and guides the company's products to prioritize user privacy and freedom, rather than advertising or selling data to third parties.

From a technical point of view, Lumo is based on open-source language models hosted in European data centersThis means that inquiries are not sent to US or Chinese providers, and that the data remains subject to strict European privacy regulations, mitigating the risks associated with more permissive surveillance laws.

Main functions of Proton's Lumo AI

Beyond privacy, Lumo is a general-purpose assistant that allows you to perform virtually all the tasks you need to do. same tasks you would expect from a modern chatbot such as writing texts, programming, summarizing documents, or searching for information on the web. Proton has been refining its capabilities with versions like Lumo 1.1 and Lumo 1.3, focused on improving comprehension, reasoning, and performance.

Among the most outstanding features are the generation and editing of texts of all typesYou can ask it to write emails, formal letters, lengthy articles, scripts, informal messages, or creative texts. It can also adapt the tone, simplify technical content, or rewrite texts while maintaining the meaning and changing the style.

Another key capability is the Summary and analysis of long documentsLumo supports file uploads (PDF, Word(Excel, presentations, and other compatible formats) to extract main ideas, explain complex concepts, generate outlines, or answer specific questions about the content. This function is especially useful for lengthy reports or corporate documentation.

In the field of programming, Lumo can generate, explain and debug code in different languages. Although it does not intend to compete directly with the most powerful developer-oriented models, tests carried out by various media outlets have shown that it is capable of creating complete utilities (for example, an HTML calculator with a dark theme and physical keyboard support) or simple tools such as format converters.

Lumo also offers translation and explanation of conceptsYou can ask it to translate texts into several languages ​​in a natural style, or to clarify technical, academic, or everyday concepts in a simple way. This makes it a valuable tool for both students and professionals who work with documents in different languages.

Specific privacy-oriented features

Where Lumo truly makes a difference is in its overall package. functions explicitly aimed at protecting the userProton has redesigned the typical architecture of an AI assistant to prevent chats from being exposed on servers and to ensure that control of the history is always in the hands of the user.

First, Lumo applies a zero-logs model on the serverThe company claims it does not maintain chat histories on its infrastructure, unlike other services that store all user activity for analysis and training. When you decide save a chatThis is encrypted so that it can only be decrypted on your own devices.

This is possible thanks to the use of Zero-access encryption, the same technology that protects Proton Mail, Proton Drive, and Proton PassUnder this scheme, not even Proton has access to the content of your conversations or documents, which reduces the attack surface against external attacks or third-party data requests.

Another very characteristic function is the Ghost ModeIf you enable this feature, conversations will automatically disappear when you close the chat, even if you're logged in. This is ideal for highly sensitive inquiries that you don't want to keep in your history, whether for personal, professional, or regulatory compliance reasons.

Furthermore, Proton points out that None of the texts, documents, or files you share with Lumo are used to train AI models.This practice, common in other services, can cause fragments of private information to reappear later in replies to other users. Lumo avoids this risk from the outset, which is especially relevant in corporate environments with trade secrets or strategic documentation.

Encrypted projects in Lumo 1.3: secure workspaces

With version Lumo 1.3, Proton introduced the Projects featureThis is one of the most significant changes geared towards organized and collaborative work. It involves encrypted, project-based workspaces where you can group both conversations and files related to the same topic.

Each project has its own independent encrypted spaceYou can upload documents, reports, presentations, recurring tasks, or any resource you need for that specific job. Lumo uses this context to offer more tailored answers and suggestions, without sacrificing the privacy that characterizes the platform.

These projects are integrated with Proton Drive, Proton's secure cloudYou can link folders and files already stored in Proton Drive directly to the project, so you don't have to constantly download and upload files. All content is kept protected with zero-access encryption, just like in the rest of the ecosystem.

One practical advantage of projects is that Lumo remembers the context, instructions, and tone of each workspaceThere's no need to repeat the same instructions over and over: AI maintains personalized guidelines, preferred style, and focus areas for that specific project, streamlining daily work and making it easier to jump between tasks without losing consistency.

Also, you can create projects for different purposes with customized instructions For each one: one project for your work, another for your studies, one for programming, another for creative writing, etc. In each one, Lumo will preserve the nuances you have defined, from the language register to the priorities or the way of structuring the results.

Integration with Proton Drive and file management

One of the great strengths of the Proton ecosystem is the natural integration between all its encrypted servicesAnd Lumo is no exception. The assistant can work with files stored on Proton Drive, allowing the entire workflow to remain within a private environment and without relying on external services.

From a conversation with Lumo it is possible Attach documents directly from Proton Drivewithout needing to download them to the device. The assistant can read, summarize, translate, or analyze these files with the same encryption guarantees offered by the rest of the platform.

There is one important exception: documents created with Proton Docs function as reference files (similar to Google DocsTherefore, they are not yet natively compatible with Lumo. To work with them, Proton itself recommends first exporting them to a standard format, such as PDF or DOCX, and then uploading them to the wizard.

Regarding formats, Lumo It supports a wide variety of file types.Texts, spreadsheets, presentations, and other common office documents are supported. You can also upload multiple files at once, as long as the total size doesn't exceed the limits of your current plan.

This entire system is based on the fact that The analyzed data is neither retained nor reused.Proton emphasizes that, after processing a file, no copy is kept on the server beyond what is strictly necessary for the work session, reinforcing the idea that AI is there to help you, not to collect your information.

Web search and access to up-to-date information

Lumo's basic knowledge extends approximately to 2023 lateBut Proton has incorporated web search capabilities to supplement answers with more recent information about rapidly changing events, products, technology, or other topics.

The peculiarity is that the Web search in Lumo is disabled by defaultThe user must expressly activate this function when they need updated information, thus preserving privacy in routine queries, which are resolved without leaving the model.

When you activate it, Lumo uses search engines that respect privacy, aligned with Proton's general philosophy. During There With this option enabled, the assistant can access the web to obtain additional context and offer richer results, especially on recent topics.

Some external analyses indicate that the web search module It's not yet Lumo's strongest point.It can make mistakes or misidentify the source, and sometimes offers less refined results than other, more established assistants in this field. However, with the latest versions (such as Lumo 1.1), Proton claims to have significantly improved the quality of these responses.

In any case, the approach is clear: Web search is an optional feature, not the core of the experienceThose who prioritize privacy can completely ignore it, while those who need updated context can turn it on as needed, according to their own criteria.

Ghost Mode, prompt formatting, and other curiosities

In addition to the main functions, Lumo incorporates a series of Interesting details that enhance the everyday experienceOne of the most striking features is Ghost Mode, already mentioned, which completely erases the conversation when the chat is closed, ideal for specific queries that you don't want to leave recorded.

Another unusual feature is that It supports formatting in the prompt itself.In other words, when writing your message you can use style elements (such as titles, bold text, or lists) and the interface visually represents them, making it easier to organize complex or long instructions without them becoming an unreadable block of text.

Internally, what the model sees is Markdown text, but Lumo's interface handles it. translate that markdown into a formatted prompt for the user. This can be very useful in contexts where you need to structure the input well: long scripts, technical descriptions, project requirements lists, etc.

Regarding performance, several users have tested Lumo generating relatively complex code projectssuch as browser extensions or small web utilities. While it falls behind in some comparisons with models like GPT or Claude for very advanced tasks, the results are more than sufficient for many everyday needs.

It is important to note that Proton recognizes that This is not the largest model on the marketNor does it (for now) have a deep reasoning mode on par with the most advanced assistants. However, the pace of improvement is rapid, with updates that have significantly increased its comprehension and reasoning capabilities.

Lumo 1.1 and Lumo 1.3: Performance and experience improvements

Version Lumo 1.1 represented a significant leap forward in terms of response qualityProton announced that, thanks to new GPUs and optimizations in its models, it had achieved a 170% improvement in context understanding, 40% more accuracy in code generation, and more than 200% in multi-step reasoning tasks.

In practice, these improvements mean that Lumo It needs fewer clarifications and corrections.It is capable of following longer conversations without losing track, planning projects composed of multiple phases, and offering more complete answers the first time, reducing the exchange of messages to reach the desired result.

With Lumo 1.3, in addition to new internal optimizations, came the Encrypted Projects function As previously mentioned, this reorganizes how you work with the assistant. Now you can have chats and files grouped by topic or client, with personalized instructions and persistent context for each project.

Meanwhile, Proton has taken a significant step by opening up the code of Lumo's mobile apps and web clientBeing open source, the community can audit the software, verify that unwanted behaviors do not slip through, and check that there are no backdoors or data leaks.

Combining improved performance, new organizational features, and greater technical transparency This reinforces the idea that Lumo is not a one-off experiment, but a long-term commitment by Proton to an AI assistant aligned with its historical values ​​of security and privacy.

AI models, open source, and European values

One of Proton's strategic decisions has been to base Lumo on open source language models instead of relying on proprietary solutions from large corporations. Among the models used are options such as Mistral Nemo (with a special focus on French), OLMo 2, coding-optimized models like OpenHands 32B, and specialized models of NVIDIA.

These models are executed exclusively in European data centers managed by ProtonThis ensures that the conversations are governed by European Union data protection law. This limits the impact of more intrusive extraterritorial regulations, such as some US surveillance laws.

This combination of open source, proprietary infrastructure, and location in Europe fits with the Proton's vision is to build technology aligned with European privacy valuesIt's not just about complying with regulations, but about using them as a framework to develop products that set clear limits on the use of data.

However, some stricter privacy advocates point out nuances: the processing of queries by the model implies that, technically, Not all of the stream is end-to-end encrypted in the classical sense.Since the server must operate on the content, not all server-side components are completely open source, which leaves room for debate.

Even with these reservations, for many users and organizations, Lumo's approach represents a qualitative leap compared to conventional attendeesespecially when it comes to handling highly sensitive information or complying with strict internal regulations on the use of cloud services.

Plans, access, and how to get started with Lumo

Proton has designed Lumo with a very low barrier to entry so that anyone can try it. It's possible. access the assistant directly from the browser, at lumo.proton.me, and even use it without creating an account, something quite unusual in the sector.

If you decide to register or are already a user of other Proton services, you will have the ability to save and sync your conversation history between devices, as well as better leveraging integration with Proton Drive and the rest of the ecosystem. Lumo mobile apps are available for Android e iOS And they essentially function as a packaged, but well-optimized, web version.

In terms of prices, Lumo offers a free level that allows you to use the assistant with certain limitationsThis plan has limits on the number of conversations, the size of the files you can upload, the chats marked as favorites, and, in the case of projects, the number you can create (usually only one in the basic version).

For those who need intensive use, Proton offers Lumo Plus, a paid subscription plan which eliminates many of these restrictions: for roughly 10 euros a month (billed annually) you get virtually unlimited conversations, larger file uploads, extended history, priority access to computing resources and more advanced AI models.

In the business world there is also Proton ProfessionalDesigned for companies that require additional features, multiple users, centralized management, greater control over permissions, and an environment tailored to the needs of organizations that handle particularly sensitive data.

One detail that Proton emphasizes is that the Lumo's funding comes from the user community and the Proton Foundationnot through advertising agreements or the sale of data. This business model allows for a clearer alignment between economic incentives and privacy protection.

Lumo de Proton presents a scenario in which Artificial intelligence can coexist with privacy and data control without the user having to sacrifice the usefulness of a modern assistant. It may not yet reach the power levels of the industry giants, but for many individuals and companies who don't want their AI to function as a covert surveillance system, it has become a very serious alternative to consider.