Screenpipe records your screen 24/7 and runs OCR. LUCI goes further — it understands your whole day in real time, builds one persistent memory, and hands it to whichever AI agent you use. Both keep your data on your device; very different capabilities.
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Life memory for every AI agent — real-time understanding of your whole day, persistent memory your agents can read. Stored on your device, encrypted at rest.
Local screen recorder + OCR search. No real-time understanding, no memory layer.
Screenpipe is a leading local screen recorder: it captures your display around the clock, runs OCR on every frame, and indexes the text for search. If you want a local, searchable log of everything on screen, it works. LUCI starts from the same premise but layers real-time video understanding, one persistent memory of your whole day, and an Agent Bridge so the AI agents you already use can query it — works with Claude, Cursor, and Codex, nothing to set up. Like Screenpipe, all your data stays on your own device. Think of Screenpipe as a DVR; LUCI is the DVR plus an analyst who watches the tape and can answer questions about it.
LUCI leads on 7 of 13 rows.
| Feature | LUCI | Screenpipe |
|---|---|---|
| Data stays on your device (no cloud) | Yes | Yes |
| 100% local storage | Yes | Yes |
| 24/7 screen capture | Yes | Yes |
| Real-time video understanding | Yes | NoOCR + text search only |
| Meeting transcription | Yes | Yes |
| Persistent memory of your whole day | Yes | No |
| Memory accessible to AI agents (MCP) | Yes | No |
| NPU / GPU-accelerated inference | YesFoundry Local + WinML | No |
| Out-of-the-box installer (no build step) | Yes | PartialSource-available, requires setup |
| CRM / Slack / Notion integrations | Yes | PartialVia community pipes |
| Chinese language support (screen understanding + STT) | Yes | PartialLimited CJK |
| Cross-platform (Mac & Windows) | Yes | YesPlus Linux |
| Pricing | Free — 100% local | Free tier; $21/mo or $250/yr |
Video understanding, one persistent memory, and access for every AI agent you run — on top of capture. 100% local. Free forever.
Local screen recorder + OCR search. No memory layer, no real-time understanding.
Screenpipe excels at low-level frame OCR. LUCI is a higher-level memory — many users move workflows over rather than migrate raw data.
Download the desktop app and grant screen + audio capture. LUCI captures continuously like Screenpipe, but adds real-time understanding.
Screenpipe pipes map to MCP queries. Point your agents and scripts at LUCI's MCP interface to reach the same data. As with Screenpipe, your data stays on your device.
Screenpipe stores data you query with keywords. LUCI structures the same data into a memory that answers plain-language questions with citations.
Record your screen with an AI that remembers everything — searchable, private, and on-device.
LUCI uses Microsoft Foundry Local to run AI inference on your NPU or GPU — no manual model downloads, no Python environments, no build steps. Download, install, and it works. Screenpipe is source-available and requires more hands-on setup.
Screenpipe captures pixels and OCRs them into searchable text. LUCI watches the video stream and understands context — who was on screen, what was being discussed, what changed in the UI — in real time.
Screenpipe stores data; you query it. LUCI structures the same data into a memory that answers questions — and exposes it over MCP so Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-capable agent can query it too.
Screenpipe is English-first with limited CJK support. LUCI handles Chinese text, audio, and UI natively — useful if your work spans both languages.
Yes. Like Screenpipe, LUCI stores everything on your own device — recordings, transcripts, and memory stay on your device, encrypted at rest. The key difference is scope: Screenpipe is a screen recorder with OCR search, while LUCI is the memory of your whole day — video understanding, cross-session recall, and readable by every AI agent you run.
Yes. LUCI captures your screen continuously and adds real-time video understanding, persistent memory, and plain-language search on top.
Screenpipe has a limited free tier and paid plans from $21 a month or $250 a year as of September 2026; the old $400 lifetime licence is no longer sold. LUCI is free. For the full understanding + memory + recall stack, LUCI's value proposition is broader — at no cost.
They're separate ecosystems. LUCI exposes its memory over MCP, so tooling you build against it speaks a standard protocol. If you're already using Screenpipe pipes, you'd need to rebuild those against LUCI's MCP interface.
Both are local-first and developer-friendly. Screenpipe has a lower-level API for raw screen data. LUCI is better if you want a higher-level memory of code reviews, PR diffs, and documentation that your coding agents can query over MCP.
Free on Mac and Windows. Fully local.