Frequently asked questions
Straight answers to the questions people ask most about Multilo — what it is, what it does, how it compares, pricing, privacy, and troubleshooting.
Short, direct answers to the questions we hear most. Use the list on the right to jump to a topic, or press ⌘K / Ctrl+K to search the whole documentation.
Getting started
What is Multilo?
Multilo is the AI document IDE for academic research and writing — the Visual Studio Code for research papers, essays, theses, and Microsoft Word documents. It is a desktop app that opens your real documents, runs project-aware AI agents directly on them, and keeps every citation anchored to a real source.
Who is Multilo for?
Students writing essays, lab reports, term papers, and theses; PhD candidates managing long dissertations with hundreds of references; researchers drafting journal articles, conference papers, and grant proposals; and supervisors reviewing and reformatting drafts.
How do I get started?
Download the desktop app from multilo.com/download, run the installer, connect your account, create a project, open or drop in a document, and run your first agent. The whole flow takes about five minutes and is covered in the Quickstart.
Which platforms does Multilo run on?
Multilo is a desktop application for Windows (10 or 11), macOS (12 or later, Apple Silicon or Intel), and Linux. Installers for all three are on the download page.
Do I need to be online to use Multilo?
You can open, edit, search, and read your files offline because Multilo is local-first. An internet connection is needed only when an AI agent calls a model — that is the one part that uses the cloud.
Features & capabilities
Can Multilo edit Microsoft Word (.docx) files?
Yes. Multilo opens any .docx as a first-class document, renders it in an AI-native editor where every agent can work on it, and saves back to .docx with headings, footnotes, tables, and in-text citations preserved. Your supervisor sees a normal Word document, never markdown.
What is the Full Draft Writer?
An autonomous agent that takes a document from a topic to a cited draft: it researches your library and, if allowed, the web, plans an outline, drafts the body section by section, and inserts real citations as it writes. It works for papers, essays, lab reports, and literature reviews.
What is Claim Check?
Claim Check is on-device citation verification. It reads every citation in your draft, fetches the cited source, and tells you whether the source actually supports the claim — and suggests a stronger source from your library when one is weak.
Can Multilo make up citations or fake sources?
No. Multilo cites from real sources in your project library, and with strict integrity mode on it refuses to fabricate a citation rather than inventing one. Claim Check then verifies each citation against its source, so unsupported claims get flagged before you submit.
Which citation styles does Multilo support?
APA, IEEE, Harvard, MLA, and Chicago. You can switch styles and the in-text markers and reference list reformat together, and the bibliography agent can reformat a whole reference list when you change target journals.
Can Multilo read my PDFs and other sources?
Yes. Multilo extracts the text of PDFs so agents can read, search, and cite them; previews Excel and CSV as tables; views images and lets agents see them; and transcribes audio and video on-device. PDFs and media are read-only sources you cite from.
Can I build my own AI agents?
Yes. You can build a custom agent on-device, or describe one in chat and let the /createagent command design and save it for you. Custom agents appear in the Agents Library with a YOURS chip and support the same MODES (depth levels) as built-in agents.
Does Multilo work with LaTeX or Overleaf files?
Multilo opens LaTeX source and BibTeX files as documents and can import BibTeX references into your library. It is built around .docx and markdown rather than being a LaTeX compiler, so it complements a LaTeX workflow rather than replacing Overleaf's compilation.
How Multilo compares
How is Multilo different from ChatGPT or Claude?
ChatGPT and Claude are chat windows: you paste paragraphs in, paste responses back, and break citations and formatting in the process. Multilo is a long-running editor with project-scoped agents that read and edit your real document, with citations anchored to real sources and verifiable via Claim Check.
How is Multilo different from Microsoft Word with Copilot?
Word + Copilot edits one paragraph at a time and has no model of your project's references. Multilo verifies every citation against a real source with Claim Check, discovers new references with Sources Hub, and drafts whole documents from your library with the Full Draft Writer.
How is Multilo different from Overleaf?
Overleaf is for compiling LaTeX documents. Multilo opens .docx, markdown, LaTeX, and text as first-class documents and is built around project-aware AI agents and citation verification rather than LaTeX compilation.
How is Multilo different from Notion or Obsidian?
Notion and Obsidian are note tools, not academic document editors. Multilo opens .docx, formats citations correctly across five styles, and ships agents built for academic workflows like citation verification, bibliography style switching, and methodology review.
Is Multilo like Cursor, but for research?
Yes. Multilo applies the Cursor / VS Code model — a long-running editor with project-aware AI agents, an extension marketplace, and a command palette — to research papers, essays, theses, and Word documents instead of source code.
Pricing & plans
Is Multilo free?
Multilo has a free tier that includes a monthly allotment of credits — enough to do real work. Paid plans add more credits, access to premium models, and additional features. Current rates are on multilo.com/pricing.
What are credits?
Credits are how AI work is metered. Running an agent, drafting, or generating suggestions draws from your balance based on how much model work the task takes and which model you choose. Local-only work like opening files, searching, and browsing your library does not use credits.
Will I be charged unexpectedly?
No. Overage is opt-in: you are not charged beyond your plan unless you explicitly enable it. By default you simply wait for the next monthly credit refresh or upgrade your plan.
Privacy & data
Where is my data stored?
Your projects are ordinary folders on your own machine. Documents, your reference library, the search index, and agent memory all live locally. Multilo is local-first by design.
Does my work leave my machine?
Only when an AI agent or suggestion needs a model. At that point the relevant context is sent to the model provider to produce the response — that is the one time your content leaves the device, and only for the work you asked for. Everything else stays local.
Can I export or delete my data?
Yes. Because your work lives in local files, exporting is as simple as copying the project folder. For account data you can request an export or deletion through your account; the privacy policy at multilo.com/privacy describes how it is handled.
Troubleshooting
The app won't connect or sign in. What do I do?
If the one-click multilo:// link does not open the app (common behind antivirus or corporate firewalls), use a connection key instead: copy it from multilo.com/connect and paste it into the app, which validates it before saving. Also check that your system clock is correct, since token validation is time-sensitive.
My download is blocked or flagged by antivirus.
Antivirus and SmartScreen sometimes flag a freshly released installer because it is new, not because anything is wrong. Choose Keep or Run anyway, and download from the official page at multilo.com/download.
An agent is editing the wrong project.
Agents act on the active project and document. Confirm which project and document are open before running an agent. Each project is fully isolated, so its library and context never leak into another.