Q, explained

Frequently asked questions.

The detailed version: what stays on your Mac, when cloud services are involved, what Q can do today, and what is still being built. For something not covered, email privacy@cue.app.

Privacy and security

Your work stays yours.

Where does Q keep my notes, meetings, and dictations?
Q keeps your record in a vault on your Mac. Notes, meeting records, and dictations are stored as ordinary Markdown files in a folder you can open, search, edit, back up, or use with another tool. Q is being built around files you own, not a cloud database you can only reach through us.
Can Cue see everything in my vault?
No cloud copy of your whole vault is required for Q to work. Local features read the files on your Mac. When a task needs a cloud model, Q is designed to send only the context needed for that task rather than uploading the vault as a whole. The exact provider and processing mode should be visible before data leaves your Mac.
Does Q work offline?
Parts of Q do. On-device dictation, local notes, and local search can work without an internet connection once the required models are installed. Cloud reasoning, cloud transcription, software updates, and connected services need a connection. Q will not describe a cloud-backed action as offline.
Does Q record my screen all day?
No. Q is not designed to keep a continuous video of your screen. Screen context is a planned, opt-in capability: the design extracts useful text on your Mac, removes the raw image after processing, and lets you pause capture or exclude apps. Those controls will be documented and tested before the feature is released.
What happens when I choose a cloud model?
The relevant audio, text, or context for that request is sent to the selected provider for processing. That handoff is governed by the provider’s terms and data practices. Cue’s promise is to make the boundary clear and keep the context narrow; choosing cloud is not the same as keeping the task entirely on your Mac.
Can I edit, export, or delete what Q remembers?
Your source record is made of files you control, so you can open, edit, move, back up, or delete it outside Q. Q is also being designed with in-product controls for inspecting and correcting derived memory. We will document exactly what gets removed from indexes and caches before that system ships.

Data handling and trust

The important boundaries.

Is Q SOC 2 certified?
No, not currently. SOC 2 is designed to give customers assurance about how a vendor protects data handled by its systems: access controls, incident response, breach notification, and similar safeguards. Q keeps your vault on your Mac, and on-device transcription, storage, and local AI do not send that work to our servers. That substantially reduces what sits on our side, but it does not make SOC 2 irrelevant: if you choose cloud transcription, cloud reasoning, or a connected service, the context needed for that task is processed by a server and the provider’s controls matter. Before Q is sold for business use, we will publish the exact architecture, subprocessors, and security scope so procurement teams can assess the real data path rather than rely on a blanket privacy claim.
What about GDPR and recording consent?
Keeping a record on your own Mac can reduce unnecessary data transfer, but it does not make every use automatically compliant. Recording and transcribing a conversation may require notice or consent depending on where you and the other participants are. You are responsible for using Q lawfully and telling people when required.
Will you offer a DPA?
Q is still in pre-release, and a standard data processing agreement has not been published. Before business launch, we will document which parts run locally, which services may process data, and which contractual terms apply. For an evaluation now, email privacy@cue.app.
Where is cloud-processed data located?
Your vault remains on your Mac. We do not store your vault or a copy of the content sent for a cloud task on our end. If you choose a cloud transcription or reasoning provider, the context needed for that task is processed under that provider’s infrastructure, regions, retention rules, and terms. We will list supported providers and their role clearly rather than make one blanket data-residency promise.
Is my audio stored?
In on-device mode, audio is processed on your Mac. In cloud mode, audio must be sent to the selected transcription provider. Q distinguishes those modes in the interface. Meeting recordings are kept only when you choose to retain them in your local vault; the final controls and defaults will be documented for release.
What happens to my files if Q goes away?
We are principled about files over apps: your data should be yours, in formats you can use without us. The Markdown files already in your vault remain readable without Q. You can keep them, back them up, and open them in other editors or agents. We cannot promise updates or connected services would continue forever, which is why your durable record is designed not to depend on them.

Using Q

What it does in practice.

What is Q, exactly?
Q is an AI chief of staff for your Mac. It brings together voice, notes, meetings, and the work you choose to connect, then uses that context to help recall decisions, prepare briefs, draft follow-ups, and keep unfinished work moving. The goal is not another blank chat box; it is useful preparation grounded in your own record.
What works today, and what is still coming?
Voice, dictation, notes, meetings, and the reactive agent are built and being hardened. Scheduled routines are entering live testing. Screen context, daily briefs assembled from your day, broader connected tools, and proactive event-driven preparation are later steps. The website will keep planned examples labelled as planned until they are ready.
What happens during a meeting?
Meeting capture is opt-in. Q can capture microphone and system audio, create a transcript, and turn the result into a local meeting note with your own notes, decisions, and follow-ups. Meeting mode is still being hardened, so supported models, permissions, and reliability details may change before general release.
Can I use Q for dictation outside meetings?
Yes. Q shares Cue’s voice engine, so you can speak into apps across your Mac as well as capture longer thoughts into your vault. On-device models are available for local dictation, while cloud models can be chosen when their accuracy or language support is useful.
Do I need a browser extension or meeting bot?
Q is a native Mac app. Its current meeting design captures the audio on your Mac, so it does not need a bot to join the call. Some future connected services may use their own authorization or companion integration; each connection will be optional and explained when it becomes available.
What can Q connect to?
Q is being built to work with the sources that hold your work: your vault, meetings, calendar, messages, documents, and selected apps. Not every connection is available yet. Sources will be added one at a time, with explicit access and a clear difference between reading context and taking an external action.
Can Q send or change things without asking?
Q can prepare private, reversible work such as a brief or draft. Meaningful external actions, including sending, publishing, spending, sharing, or changing something another person can see, are designed to wait for your approval. The default is conservative, and the approval should show you what will happen before it happens.
How does Q hand work to another AI agent?
Q can assemble the relevant request, sources, decisions, and constraints into a focused handoff for an agent you choose. You review what leaves Q first. The result can then return to the original project or thread with its sources attached, instead of becoming a disconnected chat.
Which Macs will Q support?
Q is being built for macOS. Final operating-system and hardware requirements have not been announced. Some on-device AI features depend on Apple Silicon and available Apple frameworks, so the supported feature set may vary by Mac even when the app itself runs.

Availability and access

Before Q launches.

Can I download Q now?
Not as a general release. Q is coming to Cue for Mac, and the current product is moving through staged testing. You can join the early-access list from the Chief of Staff page; we will send an update when there is a version ready for broader use.
How much will Q cost?
Final pricing has not been announced. Q is being designed as an ongoing service rather than a licence-key or lifetime purchase, because its reasoning and connected work have recurring costs. The exact plan, included usage, and cancellation terms will be published before anyone is asked to pay.
Is Q the same product as Cue voice-to-text?
They are related, but they solve different jobs. Cue is the fast, free voice-to-text tool for Mac. Q builds a chief-of-staff layer on the shared voice engine and open vault format: meetings, memory, preparation, and approval-gated agent work. Cue can stay a focused dictation tool even as Q becomes broader.
Will I lose my notes if I stop using Q?
No. Your files stay on your Mac and remain readable in other tools. Credits you bought never expire. Your own API keys pause when Cue Pro ends because BYOK is a Pro feature, but the keys are not deleted and work again if you resubscribe.
What happens to existing Forever purchases?
Forever is no longer sold. If you bought it, you keep everything you paid for, permanently.

Coming to Cue for Mac

Less to hold in your head.

Join the early-access list and we will send one email when Q is ready for broader use.

Keep me posted