Proton Lumo 2.0 Adds Image Generation, Memory, Stronger Web Search

Last summer, Swiss-based Proton launched Lumo, an AI assistant with a privacy-first approach. Today, the company has announced Lumo 2.0, a major update to the chatbot that brings three new features commensurate with its core principles of no logs, no data sharing, and zero-access encryption.

Proton says Lumo 2 has been rebuilt on a new architecture that brings its biggest leap in capability to date, with Fast and Thinking modes now available. Fast of course prioritizes speed, while Thinking is optimized for more complex, multi-step reasoning. Proton says Lumo 2 responds to everyday queries up to 76 percent faster than Lumo 1.4.

Beyond the new architecture, Lumo 2 also boasts multimodal capabilities such as image generation and image recognition. Users can now upload an image to analyze, create visuals from a prompt or a rough sketch, or edit existing images, all in the same conversation.

On top of the new features, Lumo 2.0 has far stronger web search compared to Lumo 1.4, according to the company. There's also a Memory feature that lets Lumo learn your preferences, working style, and ongoing context, with the context window now twice as large.

Lumo 2.0 also introduces Custom Lumos, described as enabling purpose-built assistants that can be tailored to specific tasks, such as a research assistant that structures answers the way you need them.

Lumo is free to use at Lumo.proton.me and does not require a Proton account when accessed. However, if you have a Proton account, your chat history can be saved using the company's "zero-access" encryption across all your devices. There are also mobile apps for iPhone and Android.

For power users, Lumo Plus brings unlimited chats, Projects, advanced image generation, and priority access to the fastest models. Plus costs $12.99 per month, and there's also a Lumo Professional plan for teams offering secure collaboration for $14.99 per user per month, with discounts currently available for both plans.