Ink & Switch is an independent research lab organized around a single premise: the computer should amplify human intelligence, not extract value from the humans using it. Their work spans four research themes — local-first software, malleable software, programmable ink, and universal version control — all oriented toward returning data ownership and tool customization to end users. The lab's most concrete output is Automerge, an open-source library for building collaborative applications using conflict-free replicated data types (CRDTs). Automerge enables offline-first sync across devices without a central server — a direct architectural challenge to the cloud-dependent SaaS model that dominates modern software. Allume (formerly Muse), a visual workspace for brainstorming and organizing ideas, represents the lab's attempt to ship a consumer-facing product built on these principles. Their 2019 essay "Local-first software: You own your data, in spite of the cloud" remains the foundational manifesto for a growing movement. It argued that cloud software's convenience came at an unacceptable cost: users surrendered ownership of their data to platform operators who could change terms, shut down, or lock users out at will. The essay landed because it named a structural problem that working engineers already felt. The research portfolio is ambitious in breadth. Ambsheets explores spreadsheets for scenario analysis. Keyhive tackles local-first access control with end-to-end encryption. Livelymerge pursues a collaborative programming kernel where an entire object memory is shared across users. Patchwork investigates dynamic environments for creative work. Each project attacks a different facet of the same problem: how to build collaborative software without a centralized chokepoint. The lab's institutional model is itself notable. Funded by individual and corporate sponsors plus grants, Ink & Switch operates outside the venture capital cycle that typically forces research labs toward monetization and extraction. This independence lets them pursue ideas — like programmable ink and universal version control — that have no obvious short-term business model but could reshape how people interact with computers. The risk is familiar: research labs with beautiful visions and shipped prototypes can remain permanently influential-but-marginal if their ideas never cross into mainstream adoption. CRDTs and local-first architecture are gaining traction among developers, but the dominant software industry still runs on centralized cloud infrastructure because that's where recurring revenue and data advantages live. Ink & Switch is building the alternative plumbing, but plumbing needs builders willing to use it at scale. Recent activity suggests momentum. The lab presented at Local-First Conf in Berlin (July 2026) and GodotCon (April 2026), where they demoed Backstitch, an Automerge-powered version control plugin for the Godot game engine. That last detail matters — integrating local-first collaboration into a popular open-source game engine is exactly the kind of lateral move that seeds adoption beyond the lab's own ecosystem.
