u/SaurabhSarode

I’m building something because I’m increasingly uncomfortable with a basic assumption behind modern document software:

Why should I have to upload my document to someone else’s server just to work with it?

We’re building a local-first document studio where the core document operations are designed to happen on your device.

The direction is broader than another PDF editor.

We’re working toward one workspace for:

• PDF operations
• OCR
• raster-to-vector conversion
• spatial/canvas document editing
• encryption and decryption
• digital signing
• document hashing and verification
• optional AI vision

The important part is where this happens.

PDF processing, OCR, vectorization, canvas operations, cryptography and supported digital signing areno designed to execute locally.

Cloud storage, when used, is intended to store encrypted documents rather than plaintext.

AI is different: if you explicitly choose to use AI Vision, only the pages you select are sent for processing. It’s opt-in rather than quietly becoming part of every document workflow.

The idea is essentially:

Your computer should be the document processing infrastructure. The cloud should be optional.

We’re still building it, and I’m deliberately posting before calling the product finished.

I’d like to hear from people who regularly work with PDFs, contracts, drawings, scanned documents or other sensitive files:

Would local-first processing actually make you switch from your current PDF/document software?

And more importantly:

What would a product like this absolutely need before you would trust it with your documents?

Starting a company in India is a bit of a complex decision.

The moment you incorporate, you’re already in debt of compliances. Filing costs, CA fees, DSC charges, renewals, penalties if you miss deadlines — it starts immediately.

The reality is, a startup is not built in one day.

First, you figure out the idea. Then you put it on paper. Then you build the business model. Then you start building the product. If it’s a tech startup, you’re building online, spending on cloud servers, APIs, AI models, tools, and infrastructure.

You’re still in a journey where you’re not even sure if the revenue you planned or dreamed of will come.

But the compliance debt keeps running.

People say, “Don’t incorporate first. Build the product, get revenue, then register the company.”

Okay, but if you’re building a tech company, many platforms don’t give you proper access, billing, startup credits, or business accounts without a registered company.

So you end up incorporating first.

And that’s where a lot of startups struggle.

If you don’t have money, you’re forced to think about funding much earlier than you should — not because of the product, but because of compliance.

DSC costs money.

Renewals cost money.

Filings cost money.

Miss a deadline, and penalties start adding up.

So what’s the focus supposed to be?

Building the product and making it better…

Or constantly paying charges just to stay compliant?