Writing

Why I created DoubleMemory

Ever wish you had a photographic memory?

Perhaps you've double-pressed ⌘C without realizing it, hoping your Mac might remember better. Or maybe you're a tab hoarder, juggling dozens of open pages just to lose track anyway. Some people have more powerful machines that still need the anti-hoarding intervention.

Saving shouldn't be a chore

Yet saving and recalling information still feels like a chore: lost links, forgotten contexts, disrupted flow. Most tools follow the same recipes: browser-based, server-connected, Internet required, registration needed, extensions hooked. To make the business work, they sell your data to "partners" for profit, yet still somehow fold under VC schedules.[1]

I believed there is a better way.

A better way

A way that is default-alive,[2] "incredible journey"-proof, and private at its core. A way that's not only 10x more efficient but also elegant and beautiful.

Where it started

I kept pressing ⌘C twice, as if copying harder would make the text stick. So I asked: what if doing it on purpose actually saved what I copied, with no browser extension and no extra step?

One afternoon I asked Claude for a prototype. It made three, in Python, JavaScript and Swift, and each one was just a list in the menu bar. That list is where DoubleMemory began.

Reading the clipboard meant a native Mac app, which also uses far fewer resources than a web app. The rest followed: sync through your own iCloud instead of a server I run, no sign-up, local-first storage, and a searchable board you can drive from the keyboard.

What DoubleMemory is

That's why I built DoubleMemory:[3] it launches instantly from the menu bar or the Dock, with effortless capture and recall for everything you save.

No accounts. No servers holding your saved content.

Just double ⌘C.

DoubleMemory keeps your memories at your fingertips on your device. It syncs privately with iCloud, works offline,[4] doubles as a clipboard manager, and displays saved content in a stunning mood board.[5]

Finally, your memory superpower unleashed.

  1. Delicious, Omnivore, UpNext, Readability and Pocket (the OG that started this category) all had to close. Even Instapaper had to change hands so many times, because not many organizations can make it work. ↩︎

  2. DoubleMemory will never shut down unless Apple shuts down iCloud or you delete it from your device. Once downloaded, it does not depend on any developer-run servers or services. ↩︎

  3. The name comes from its one-of-a-kind capturing scheme, Double ⌘ + C, and is a wordplay on Second (double) Brain (memory). ↩︎

  4. Apple figured out local-first with iCloud CloudKit way before everyone else. It works without an internet connection, and as soon as you're back online it syncs right back to your iCloud. ↩︎

  5. Links show as preview cards on a Pinterest-like waterfall board, for all your favorite websites, from Amazon and Redfin listings to Apple Music and Spotify, from Reddit threads to TikTok videos. No more boring lists, just a beautiful board. ↩︎