Private research tools for Mac, iPhone & iPad

Turn PDFs and webpages into useful Markdown.

Convert documents locally, capture research from Safari, organize the sources that matter, and, on supported devices, ask questions across them with on-device AI.

Download on the App Store See how it works
  • Local PDF & OCR
  • Safari to Markdown
  • On-device Ask This Pack
  • No SourceShelf cloud
SourceShelf converting a PDF and scanned pages into searchable Markdown using local extraction and OCR.

Convert → Ask → Capture

Convert documents into useful Markdown.

Start with a PDF, scan, image, or webpage, then keep the result in a searchable local research library.

SourceShelf conversion screen ready to turn PDFs, scans, and supported documents into Markdown.

Convert PDFs & scans locally

Convert PDF to Markdown with local text extraction, or use Apple OCR for scanned PDFs and images. SourceShelf creates normal Markdown you can inspect, edit, archive, search, or add to a Pack.

Explore PDF to Markdown
Ask This Pack in SourceShelf answering a question from selected research sources and showing citations.

Ask the research you saved

Add the sources that matter to a Pack, then ask questions across them directly in SourceShelf. On supported Apple Intelligence devices, answers are generated on-device using the selected Pack as context.

Organize what matters

Bring related research together.

Combine converted documents, saved webpages, notes, and other sources into focused Packs you can search, reuse, ask, export, or move between devices.

SourceShelf searchable research Library containing organized sources and reusable Packs.

Build a focused Pack

Keep the sources for a project together in a searchable Pack that stays useful across reading, asking, exporting, and reuse.

SourceShelf Trust and Safety review showing the readiness of a selected knowledge pack.

Check Pack Health before you share

On Mac, spot missing files, stale pages, and risky instructions before sharing or exporting a Pack.

SourceShelf Refresh and Compare report classifying changed and missing sources.

Review changes before you reuse them

On Mac, Refresh & Compare finds new, changed, missing, and unchanged sources before you update a Pack.

Your knowledge remains yours

Private by design.

PDF extraction, local OCR, Safari capture, Library work, and Ask This Pack all run on your device. Ask This Pack uses Apple’s on-device model on supported Apple Intelligence devices.

SourceShelf does not upload your documents, requires no SourceShelf cloud account, and sends no app telemetry or tracking. A third-party AI client connected through MCP follows its own model and privacy policies.

Local extraction and OCR. No SourceShelf cloud. No app telemetry. Read the privacy details
SourceShelf privacy settings explaining local processing, no SourceShelf cloud, no account, and no app telemetry.

Portable context and controlled access

Use your research wherever you need it.

Ask a Pack directly in SourceShelf, export it as portable Markdown-based context, or give a compatible AI client controlled read-only access.

See read-only Local AI Access setup guides
SourceShelf export options for AI bundles, Markdown, llms.txt, and other workflows.

Export portable research context

Create an AI Reference Pack, a Markdown Context Pack, one Markdown file, a portable llms.txt collection, or an OKF-compatible pack.

SourceShelf Local AI Access window publishing a controlled read-only Pack snapshot through MCP.

Connect a compatible AI client with read-only MCP

On Mac, publish a controlled snapshot of one Pack so a compatible AI client can search it without browsing your whole Library.

Built for Apple devices

Research stays useful from capture to question.

Start with the formats you already use.

PDF to Markdown, scanned PDF to Markdown with local OCR, and webpage to Markdown from Safari work across supported Apple devices. On Mac, SourceShelf also converts Word, PowerPoint, Excel, RTF, HTML, Markdown, and text.

See supported formats

Carry focused research between devices.

Use the local Library, Packs, portable import and export, offline reading, and Ask This Pack on Mac, iPhone, and iPad. Mac adds advanced Pack Health, Refresh & Compare, and MCP workflows.

Explore the documentation

SourceShelf use cases

Ways to use SourceShelf

Start with the concrete workflow that matches the research you need to convert, capture, organize, or ask.

Turn the research you already have into something you can use.

Convert documents, capture webpages, build focused Packs, and ask your sources — while keeping your research under your control.

Download on the App Store Explore SourceShelf documentation