Capacities: the AI-assisted note-taking and organization tool that makes your professional and intellectual life easier

Capacities: the AI-based knowledge management tool that transforms the way you think

Capacities is a versatile tool with built-in artificial intelligence. It is a personal knowledge management platform. What's more, it provides users with a note-taking tool that doesn't function like a simple notepad.

Capacities enables ideas to be structured in the form of interconnected objects (projects, people, concepts, etc.) that promote a global understanding of a set of thoughts. The Capacities environment is designed to stimulate creativity and intellectual organization.

Capacities was set up by co-founders Michael Von Hohnhorst and Steffen Bleher to overcome the constraints of traditional file management.

Key team members are Luis (back-end development), Jonas and Luca (front-end development), Beth (content and community manager) and Réka (marketing and growth).

The official launch took place in January 2022, with mobile expansion from July in 2024.

Unlike competitors such as Notion, Obsidian or Roam Research, Capacities focuses not only on the interconnections between ideas, but also on an experience designed for the individual user. The result is an elegant interface, contextual integrations and, above all, an AI assistant designed to interact with your content. And it's not just about text generation.

Powerful AI features for knowledge management

Capacities features :

• Advanced information organization: notes are objects that can be linked together, enriched with customizable properties and grouped into collections.
• Intelligent search: Capacities enhances search in content and conversations.
• Integrated AI assistant: you can ask questions, launch summaries or request reformulations directly in the notes, to clarify or enrich the user's ideas.
• Saving AI chats as objects: this tool also lets you save your exchanges with the AI for later retrieval and structuring.
• Cross-platform and mobile: you can access your data from your mobile device (iOS/Android), with seamless synchronization between devices.

AI integration isn't just an ancillary tool in the sense that it's deeply linked to a knowledge base. AI chats become objects that users can link, tag and archive. As a result, one-off interactions are transformed into persistent, reusable reflection elements.

Some advanced features, such as automatic and complete import from other tools (Notion, Obsidian), are not yet fully developed. Some user feedback points to performance problems on very large documents or on certain platforms. We also note that the mobile experience, while existing, is still evolving according to some feedback.

Capacities offers several useful integrations:

• Extensions to quickly capture content: WhatsApp, Telegram, email, tweets, etc. ;
• Raycast and Web Highlights: to save or search for ideas without opening the main app;
• API in open beta for the community to develop new connections.

A variety of uses for a variety of users

Capacities is primarily aimed at writers, researchers, founders, managers, developers and students. It also targets content creators.

• Content creators, writers and thinkers who want to structure and evolve their ideas.
• Students and researchers who need to organize large quantities of information and establish links between concepts.
• Knowledge professionals (consultants, trainers, strategists) who want to visualize their data in a less linear way than a simple document.

Typical use cases include :

• Thematicorganizationof advanced research;
• Building a personal method of thinking, e.g. for a thesis, a book or a long-term project;
• AI-enhanced dailyjournaling .

Capacities may disappoint profiles such as :

• Purely productivity-oriented users (simple task management, To-do lists) may find it too dense or conceptual;
• Those who want very advanced automation or conversational AI detached from notes may find more specialized solutions elsewhere.

Capacities: a learned yet accessible approach

Capacities is not simply an application that the user opens, writes a note and forgets. Its "objects" approach, rather than pages or files, requires a little familiarization for newcomers. It's a thinking logic, not just a storage logic.

For a totally novice user, there's a slight adaptation time, especially if you come from linear tools such as folder-based systems. At first, they may feel a little "alien" to this networked organization. But as soon as they understand the logic of objects, relationships and contextual links, they quickly become productive. User feedback shows that after just a few hours' experimentation, most users find a natural dynamic in the tool.

Right from the outset, Capacities gives the impression of a modern, uncluttered thinking space. The interface is visually pleasing. Sober without being boring, it encourages concentration rather than distraction.

Ergonomics are neat and fluid on the whole. Menus are clear and the integration of functions (search, object creation, backlinks) is logical. Although the overall impression is of a coherent, modern user experience, some of the more advanced elements require a moment's exploration, such as queries and timeline views.

According to community feedback, there are sometimes perceived slownesses or minor frictions on very large volumes of data, but nothing that prevents daily use for the majority of users.

Capacities provides structured official documentation, including start-up guides. There's also an introduction to key concepts and step-by-step tutorials on how to think in object mode, not to mention a dense FAQ.

In addition to the documentation, there's an active community (notably on Discord and Reddit). There, users and sometimes even developers exchange tips, methods and best practices. This is a real plus when you're just starting out. This gives you a feeling of being accompanied rather than left to your own devices, in the sense that between the structured documentation, the presence of an integrated assistant and community exchanges, you never really get stuck.

First of all, the application is linguistically accessible. It is mainly in English and can be translated. Capacities is cross-platform. This means it's available on the browser, with native apps for Windows, macOS, Linux, iOS and Android, and seamless synchronization between all these devices.

Mobile support is real and solid, as users can capture an idea in seconds on their phone and then retrieve it on their computer. However, the mobile interface remains less powerful than the desktop version for the most complex functions.

Affordable rates for satisfied customers

Capacities adopts a freemium model, with a free basic version that remains very generous while offering essential functionalities.

The project's official philosophy is to keep the free version accessible over the long term, while at the same time offering paying offers to finance ongoing development and the creation of educational content around the tool.

Capacities offers the following costs:

• Basic (free): unlimited for spaces, objects and blocks, synchronization, offline support and full search, with a limit of around 5 GB for media.
• Pro: $9.99/month, giving access to AI assistant, calendar integrations, smart queries, Web Highlights, extensions like Raycast, API, unlimited storage and more.
• Believer: from $12.49/month, adding early access to new features and the satisfaction of directly supporting the independent team.

A free trial of Pro features is usually offered, allowing you to test out the AI assistant and advanced tools before committing.

The first thing that strikes you about Capacities is its conceptual ambition, in that it's a platform designed to create a structured second brain, where ideas, people, projects, quotes and thoughts become living, interconnected objects.

The integration of AI directly at the heart of the objects enables us to think with the content, not just around it. This represents a subtle but powerful difference for those working on complex projects or lengthy research.

The main drawback, often mentioned by users, is the learning curve. Indeed, object-based logic requires a bit of effort to fully master, especially for those coming from more linear tools.

We also note that certain advanced functionalities are not yet fully mature (such as certain integrations, APIs or mobile options), and that the absence of real-time collaboration can be a hindrance to teamwork.

Capacities is a real discovery for deep thinkers such as: researchers, writers, students on long-term projects, content creators, demanding learners, as well as anyone who wants to structure their thinking in a dynamic and evolutionary way.

More than just software, IA Capacities is a structured thinking environment designed to support the maturation of ideas. It doesn't replace human intelligence, but enhances it by providing a coherent, evolving framework that respects the long term.