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TurboMail vs Superhuman and Shortwave
All three put AI in your inbox. The difference is where that AI runs, and so who handles your email along the way.
The short answer
TurboMail is a desktop email client whose AI runs on your own computer. Your email is never sent to TurboMail or to an AI company unless you choose a cloud model with your own key. It's free during the beta.
Superhuman and Shortwave are cloud services. Their AI features run on their servers and AI partners, which lets them offer web and mobile apps and team features, in exchange for your email passing through their infrastructure. Both are paid subscriptions for their full AI features.
Pick TurboMail if keeping your inbox on your own machine matters most. Pick a cloud client if you need your AI email on your phone today.
Side by side
| TurboMail | Superhuman | Shortwave | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where the AI runs | On your computer (local model); cloud only if you add your own key | Vendor's cloud | Vendor's cloud |
| Email sent to the vendor | Never | Yes, to provide the service | Yes, to provide the service |
| Works offline | AI works on mail already synced | Limited | Limited |
| Accounts | Gmail, Outlook, any IMAP | Gmail, Outlook | Gmail-focused |
| Platforms | macOS, Windows | Desktop, web, mobile | Desktop, web, mobile |
| Price | Free during beta | Paid subscription | Free tier; AI features on paid plans |
Details for other products are from their public websites as of October 2026 and may change; check their sites for current plans.
Why TurboMail runs the AI locally
To summarize, search, or draft from your email, an AI has to read it. With a cloud client, that reading happens on someone else's servers. TurboMail ships with a 1 GB model that does search, summaries, ranking, and drafting on your machine, so the most personal archive you own stays on it. That's also why it fits teams that can't send client data to a vendor, like law firms, clinics, and finance teams.
If you want a bigger model, you can add your own OpenAI, Anthropic, or Google API key. Requests then go straight from your computer to that provider under your own account, and TurboMail is never in the path.
Where a cloud client is the better choice
- You live on your phone. TurboMail is desktop-only for now.
- You need shared team inboxes and collaboration features built around a hosted service.
- Your computer is very short on disk space. TurboMail needs about 2 GB, including the model.
Switching is easy to try
TurboMail connects to your existing Gmail, Outlook, or IMAP account, so you can run it alongside whatever you use now. Nothing moves and nothing breaks. Questions about privacy and the AI are answered in the FAQ.