How to Enable AI Search in Apple Notes Without Switching Apps

Free

Apple Intelligence pricing

7GB

Required storage for AI models

100%

Privacy with offline AI

20+

File formats supported

Step 1: Check Compatibility

Go to Settings > General > About. Verify you're running iOS 18.1 or later (update via Settings > General > Software Update if needed). Confirm your device is an iPhone 15 Pro series or iPhone 16 series.

Step 2: Enable Apple Intelligence

Open Settings > Apple Intelligence & Siri. Toggle on “Apple Intelligence.” Your device will download approximately 7GB of AI models. This happens once and requires a Wi-Fi connection. The download time varies based on your internet speed, typically 10 to 30 minutes.

Step 3: Access Writing Tools

Open any note and select text. You'll see the AI sparkle icon appear on your keyboard. Alternatively, select text and tap the three-dot menu, then choose “Writing Tools.” The menu presents options: Proofread, Rewrite, or Summarize.

Step 4: Create Audio Summaries

Tap the microphone icon in Notes to record. After stopping, tap the recording thumbnail, then select “Create Summary.” Apple Intelligence generates a transcript overview highlighting the main points.

Understanding vs. Matching

Apple Intelligence searches keywords only. If you search “budget planning,” it finds only notes containing those exact words. Elephas understands meaning and context, so searching “budget planning” also finds notes about “financial forecasts,” “spending allocations,” or “Q4 funding.”

Exact Words vs. Related Concepts

Apple Intelligence requires exact word matches, failing when you don't remember your precise phrasing. Elephas finds related concepts, so searching “team collaboration” surfaces notes about “group projects,” “cross-functional meetings,” and “partnership initiatives.”

Single Notes vs. Knowledge Base

Apple Intelligence cannot query across notes. Each search is isolated. Elephas searches your entire knowledge base, connecting information across hundreds or thousands of notes, folders, and even other apps like Obsidian, Notion, LogSeq, and Roam Research.

Separate App vs. Integrated Workflow

Apple Intelligence searches in Spotlight require you to leave Notes, scan results, and manually open each note. Elephas integrates with Notes workflow through a hotkey-activated sidebar or Super Chat interface. Query your notes and get answers with citations back to the original sources, all without leaving your context.

On-Device vs. Model Choice

Apple Intelligence processes most requests on-device but gives you no choice in which AI models to use. You're locked into Apple's models. Elephas lets you choose: built-in local AI models that never send data anywhere, or cloud APIs from ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, or Grok if you prefer their capabilities.

Offline Mode with Complete Control

Apple Intelligence requires an internet connection for initial setup and some features. Elephas offers true offline mode with Ollama, keeping all data on your Mac with zero cloud communication. Install Ollama, select a local model like Qwen or Llama, and your entire knowledge base (indexing, search, and queries) runs locally. Your data never leaves your machine.

Multiple AI Options

Beyond privacy, model choice affects capabilities. ChatGPT excels at creative tasks, Claude at analysis and reasoning, Gemini at multimodal understanding, Perplexity at research-backed answers. Elephas supports them all, plus local models like Llama 3.3 that match GPT-4 quality while running entirely offline.

Step 1: Download and Install

Visit elephas.app and download the Mac app. Pricing is $9.99/month or a one-time lifetime purchase of $249. A 7-day free trial is available with no credit card required.

Step 2: Create Your First Super Brain

Launch Elephas and click the “+” icon to create a new Super Brain. Name it (e.g., “Personal Notes” or “Work Knowledge”). Select an embedding model (OpenAI for cloud processing or local models for privacy). Click “Create.”

Step 3: Connect to Apple Notes

In your Super Brain settings, navigate to the “Knowledge Base” tab. Click “Add Files/Folders,” then select the “Apps” tab. Click “Connect Apple Notes.” A file picker appears. Select the Notes folders you want to index. You can choose individual folders or your entire Notes library.

Step 4: Choose Your AI Model

Go to Preferences > AI Models. Select your preferred model: Cloud APIs (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, or Grok) or Offline (select “Offline AI” and choose a local model).

Step 5: Index Your Notes

Click “Index” in your Super Brain. Elephas processes your selected Notes folders, creating semantic embeddings. Indexing time varies based on note count, typically 1 to 5 minutes for a few hundred notes. Enable “Auto-sync every 4 hours” to keep your knowledge base current automatically.

Step 6: Query with Super Chat

Open Super Chat (Cmd+Shift+Space by default) and ask natural language questions: “What notes mention budget planning?” “Summarize my ideas about the marketing campaign.” “Find everything related to client feedback from last quarter.” Elephas returns relevant excerpts with citations linking directly to your original notes.

Choose Apple Intelligence if:

• You only need text editing, proofreading, tone changes, and audio summaries
• Basic keyword search through Spotlight works for you
• You already have compatible devices (iPhone 15 Pro or M-series Mac/iPad)
• You want a completely free solution with zero setup beyond toggling a setting
• Privacy is important and you're comfortable with Apple's on-device processing
• You rarely need to find old notes and mostly work with recent content

Choose Elephas if:

• You need to find information across many notes using natural language queries
• Keyword search frustrates you because you can't remember exact phrases
• You want complete privacy with 100% offline AI processing (via Ollama)
• You use other note apps beyond Apple Notes (Obsidian, Notion, LogSeq, Roam)
• You need workflow automation and AI agents for complex tasks
• You want to choose your AI models based on task requirements
• You have hundreds or thousands of notes and need semantic search
• You frequently reference past information and need fast retrieval

Choose Both (Most Powerful Setup):

Most users benefit from using Apple Intelligence for editing and Elephas for search. They serve different purposes:

• Use Apple Intelligence's Writing Tools to proofread, rewrite, and summarize text as you write
• Use Elephas's semantic search to find and retrieve information across your knowledge base
• Use Apple Intelligence's audio summaries for meeting transcripts
• Use Elephas's cross-platform integration to query notes across all your apps

This combination gives you the best of both worlds: free on-device editing from Apple Intelligence and powerful semantic search from Elephas, all without switching apps or disrupting your workflow.