Writing Apps That Won't Train AI on Your Work (2026)

Writers have good reason to ask where their words go. In a 2023 Authors Guild survey of more than 2,400 authors, 96% said writers should have to consent before their work is used to train AI. A November 2025 University of Cambridge study found that 59% of published UK novelists know their work was used to train AI models without permission or payment. And in July 2026, a court gave final approval to the $1.5 billion Bartz v. Anthropic settlement over books taken from pirate libraries.

So it is reasonable to want a writing app that keeps your manuscript away from AI. This guide compares the popular options on what actually matters, using each company's own policies as of October 2026.

Three questions to ask any writing app

1. Is generative AI built in, and is it on by default? An app can promise not to train on your work and still offer to rewrite your chapter every time you select a sentence.
2. Does your writing ever reach the company's servers? This is the question that matters most. If your manuscript never leaves your computer, the company has no copy to train on, sell, or lose in a breach. A cloud app asks you to trust a policy, and policies change.
3. What does the policy say about training, and is it opt-in or opt-out? A training setting that is on by default means your text is used unless you find the switch.

The comparison

Local and AI-free: the strongest protection

These apps keep your manuscript on your own disk and have no generative AI of their own. You do not have to take anyone's word for what happens to your text, because it never leaves your machine unless you move it.

Scrivener

Literature & Latte states that Scrivener contains no AI, does not take part in data scraping, and does nothing in the background that would send your text to another server. Projects are files on your computer, and you choose whether to sync them through Dropbox, iCloud or OneDrive. The trade-off is the famous learning curve. It costs a one-time $59.99 per desktop platform.

Obsidian

Obsidian saves everything as Markdown files on your device and says your data is never sent to its servers. There is no AI in the core app, though community plugins can add it, so check any plugin you install. It is free, but it is a notes app you bend into a writing tool.

iA Writer

iA Writer processes your writing on your device and has no AI writing features of its own. Its Authorship feature goes further than most: it marks text pasted from tools like ChatGPT or Claude, so you can always see which words are yours. It is a one-time purchase on Mac, iOS and Windows.

QuillSpace

QuillSpace is a book writing app for Windows and Mac that saves your work as plain text files on your own computer, not in someone else's cloud. It has no generative AI features, and because we never receive your manuscript, there is nothing for us to train on. On Windows, even turning a voice memo into text runs on your PC, so the audio is never uploaded either (see how it works). It gives you Scrivener-style organization (groups for chapters, characters and research, with sheets you drag to reorder) that you can learn in an afternoon.

To be fully transparent: QuillSpace is not completely silent on the network. The Windows app sends usage statistics, such as which features are used and counts like how many sheets you create, and the Mac app sends a short welcome survey. Neither ever sends your text. Our privacy policy lists everything, and the app keeps working if you block its network access.

AI-free, but in the cloud

Dabble states that it will never write for you and has no chatbot, and its privacy policy says your content will not be used to train generative AI. Your writing saves to your device first, then syncs to Dabble's servers. It is a subscription.

Ellipsus has published a clear stance: it will never integrate generative AI, and it will never sell your data or use your work for exploitative purposes. It is a collaborative web app, so your documents live in its cloud.

Both are good choices if you trust the company and want features like sync or collaboration. The difference from a local app is that the protection rests on a promise rather than on where your files physically are.

Big suites that promise not to train

Google Docs says content you use with Gemini in Docs is not used to train Gemini or other generative models. Gemini is built into eligible plans and shows up by default, and Google notes that some interactions with smart features, such as accepting a spelling suggestion, may be used to improve those features.

Microsoft Word says file contents used with Copilot are not used to train foundation models. In November 2024, a viral post claimed Word's connected experiences setting fed documents to AI training; Microsoft denied it publicly, though the setting is on by default. Since January 2025, Copilot is included and switched on in Microsoft 365 Personal and Family, which came with a price increase.

Notion says it does not use customer data to train models by default, and its contracts bar its AI providers from doing so. Notion AI appears on every plan as a trial, and your pages live in Notion's cloud.

If you already work in one of these, the training promises are real, but you will be writing next to an AI that offers to help on every page.

One to watch: Grammarly

Grammarly's help center says product improvement and training is on by default for individual users, with an opt-out in your account's privacy settings. In March 2026 the company pulled an "Expert Review" feature that produced feedback styled after real authors and academics without their consent, and a class action followed. If you use it, check that setting.

Mac users: Apple Intelligence is a separate layer

On a Mac, Apple Intelligence Writing Tools are part of macOS, not part of your writing app, and they can appear when you select text in many apps, including Scrivener and QuillSpace. Each app decides whether to allow them in its own editor: Ulysses, for example, lets you switch them off from its Edit menu. To turn them off everywhere, Literature & Latte explains that macOS 27 removed the single off switch, so you now do it in Screen Time, under Content & Privacy, then Siri, by switching off Writing Assistance.

How to choose

• If you want the deepest project tools and no AI, and do not mind the learning curve, choose Scrivener.
• If you want free, local files and enjoy building your own setup, use Obsidian.
• If you want a beautiful local editor that shows you exactly which words came from AI, try iA Writer.
• If you want cloud sync or collaboration from a company that has pledged to stay AI-free, look at Dabble or Ellipsus.
• If you want Scrivener-style organization you can learn in an afternoon, with your manuscript in plain text files that never leave your computer, try QuillSpace.

Whatever you pick, apply the three questions above to any app before you trust it with a manuscript. For the organization side of the decision, see our guide to the best Scrivener alternatives.

Frequently asked questions

Does Google Docs use my documents to train AI?

Google says content you use with Gemini in Docs is not used to train Gemini or other generative AI models. Some interactions with smart features, such as accepting a spelling suggestion, may still be used to improve those features, and your documents live on Google's servers.

Does Microsoft Word use my documents to train AI?

Microsoft says your prompts, responses and file contents in Copilot are not used to train foundation models, and it denied training on Word documents during the 2024 connected experiences controversy. Copilot itself is switched on by default in Microsoft 365 Personal and Family.

Which writing apps have no generative AI at all?

Among popular tools, Scrivener, Dabble and Ellipsus state they have no generative AI, and Obsidian and iA Writer have none built in. QuillSpace has no generative AI features either. On a Mac, Apple Intelligence Writing Tools are part of macOS and can still appear in many apps.

Is a local writing app safer than a cloud one for AI training?

For this specific worry, yes. A cloud app asks you to trust its policy, which can change. A local app that never uploads your manuscript, such as Scrivener, Obsidian or QuillSpace, never has a copy of your writing to train on or to lose in a breach.

Can I stop Apple Intelligence from appearing in my writing app?

Yes. Writing Tools come from macOS, and some apps, such as Ulysses, let you switch them off from their own menu. To turn them off in every app, Literature & Latte explains that on macOS 27 you go to Screen Time, under Content & Privacy, then Siri, and switch off Writing Assistance.

Sources

• Authors Guild AI survey (December 2023)
• University of Cambridge, generative AI and novelists (November 2025)
• Writer Beware on the Bartz v. Anthropic final settlement (July 2026)
• Google: Gemini in Docs and your data
• Microsoft: Copilot in Microsoft 365 apps for home, your data and privacy
• Malwarebytes on the connected experiences controversy (November 2024)
• Notion AI security practices
• Grammarly: product improvement and training
• Times Higher Education on the Grammarly lawsuit (March 2026)
• Ulysses: Writing Tools
• Dabble is AI-free and Dabble privacy policy
• Ellipsus: our stance on generative AI
• Literature & Latte: does Scrivener use AI? and AI prompts in Scrivener on Mac
• Obsidian privacy policy
• iA Writer privacy and See what AI wrote

Disclosure: This article is published by QuillSpace. We have tried to be fair, including recommending other apps when they fit better. Policies and features are current as of October 2026 and taken from each company's own pages; they change often, so check the latest before you decide.

Last updated: October 3, 2026