Orchid
A personal assistant in your iMessage thread: inbox triage, drafts in your voice, scheduling and meeting prep, paid from $29.99/month.
Group: Personal agents you message
Orchid documents a personal assistant that lives in iMessage: it reads your connected Gmail, drafts replies in your voice, schedules on your Google Calendar with your approval, preps you before meetings, plans travel, and runs recurring habits - all from a text thread, with no app to install. The vendor has also launched Keiki, a platform for building customer-facing agents across iMessage, SMS, WhatsApp, Slack, Telegram and email.
The decision in plain English
Orchid is paid from $29.99/month with no free tier (the vendor argues an assistant that reads your inbox should not be paid for with your data). Only Gmail and Google Calendar connect today; Outlook, Slack, Notion and Linear are listed as on the way. Approval-first: drafts stay drafts and calendar holds need your sign-off.
Best fit
Founders, lawyers and other busy professionals who want inbox triage, drafting and scheduling handled from an iMessage thread.
Poor fit
Anyone wanting a free tier, or needing integrations beyond Gmail and Google Calendar today.
Documented capabilities
Vendor statements, not verified task outcomes.
- Inbox triage and reply drafts in your voice (Gmail) Source · checked 2026-10-21
- Scheduling and calendar holds with approval (Google Calendar) Source · checked 2026-10-21
- Meeting prep briefings by text Source · checked 2026-10-21
- Conditional reminders Source · checked 2026-10-21
- Voice notes in the thread Source · checked 2026-10-21
- Recurring habits (news digests, trackers, check-ins) Source · checked 2026-10-21
- Travel planning and itineraries Source · checked 2026-10-21
- Gift sourcing and personal admin Source · checked 2026-10-21
Permissions and human control
- Gmail and Google Calendar connect via Google sign-in (OAuth); access revocable from the Google account at any time.
- Email replies stay as drafts until you approve; calendar holds and bookings happen only with your approval, per the FAQ.
Documented controls do not prove that an agent always follows them.
Limits and open questions
- No free tier: paid from $29.99/month (vendor blog, read 24 October 2026).
- Only Gmail and Google Calendar connect today; Outlook, Slack, Notion and Linear are not yet available.
- Draft quality, voice matching and reliability were not tested.
- The vendor now also sells Keiki, a separate business platform for building customer-facing agents; it is not part of the personal assistant record here.
Privacy and security
Privacy policy published (updated 16 January 2026): OAuth 2.0 least-privilege integrations, data deletion on request, approval/edit before actions execute, audit trails. The FAQ states Orchid never sells your data, shares it, or uses it to train any model.
Feature-by-feature: what is documented and what is not
Official sources checked 24 October 2026. A documented feature is a vendor statement, not proof of success.
| Feature | Evidence status | Detail and limit |
|---|---|---|
| Messaging channels | Documented | iMessage thread (blue bubble) with a dedicated number; voice notes supported. Source |
| Email and calendar | Documented with approvals | Gmail triage and drafts, Google Calendar holds; nothing sends or books without your approval. Source |
| Other integrations | Announced, not live | Outlook, Slack, Notion and Linear listed as on the way. Source |
| Cost | Documented | Paid from $29.99/month, flat, no free tier; student and founder deals. Source |
| Privacy | Documented | Policy published; OAuth least-privilege; no sale, sharing or training per FAQ. Source |
How to start with Orchid narrowly
- Text +1 (415) 605-3216 to start the thread.
- Connect Gmail and Google Calendar via Google sign-in from the link Orchid sends.
- Set approval preferences before letting it draft or schedule for real contacts.
Official product/setup source. These are documentation-based steps, not a hands-on setup test.
Common questions about Orchid
What is Orchid for?
Founders, lawyers and other busy professionals who want inbox triage, drafting and scheduling handled from an iMessage thread. The vendor describes it as: Orchid documents a personal assistant that lives in iMessage: it reads your connected Gmail, drafts replies in your voice, schedules on your Google Calendar with your approval, preps you before meetings, plans travel, and runs recurring habits - all from a text thread, with no app to install. The vendor has also launched Keiki, a platform for building customer-facing agents across iMessage, SMS, WhatsApp, Slack, Telegram and email.
Who should look elsewhere?
Anyone wanting a free tier, or needing integrations beyond Gmail and Google Calendar today.
How much does Orchid cost?
Vendor blog (read 21 October 2026): paid, from $29.99/mo flat, no free tier; student and founder deals exist.
What can it access and what needs my approval?
Gmail and Google Calendar connect via Google sign-in (OAuth); access revocable from the Google account at any time. Email replies stay as drafts until you approve; calendar holds and bookings happen only with your approval, per the FAQ.
What happens to my data?
Privacy policy published (updated 16 January 2026): OAuth 2.0 least-privilege integrations, data deletion on request, approval/edit before actions execute, audit trails. The FAQ states Orchid never sells your data, shares it, or uses it to train any model.
Has AgentComparison tested it?
No. This record is built from the vendor's own documentation, checked 2026-10-24. Vendor claims are attributed, not confirmed.
How to evaluate Orchid yourself
- Pick one low-risk task that matches its documented capabilities: inbox triage and reply drafts in your voice (gmail).
- Write the expected output and what counts as failure before you start.
- Connect the minimum access needed, and check approval settings first.
- Run it twice and compare, then review every action it took.
- Check cost after any free allowance. Unknown price is not free.
Related
Documented use cases: Personal email, calendar and reminders.
- Poke (product): Messaging-based email, calendar and reminder work.
- Instinct (product): A messaging-first assistant connected to personal apps and devices.
- Martin (product): People who want one assistant across phone, text and chat tools.
- Iris (product): People who want a texting assistant with scheduled tasks and several named agents.
- Ohai (product): Parents who want a household manager they can text, with optional human help.
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- Latest agent updates
Sources and history
- https://orchid.ai/ · official · read 24 October 2026
- https://orchid.ai/faq · official · read 24 October 2026
- https://orchid.ai/blog/orchid-ai-assistant-imessage · official · read 24 October 2026
- https://orchid.ai/privacy · official · read 24 October 2026
- https://orchid.ai/blog/introducing-keiki · official · read 24 October 2026
Change history
- 2026-10-21: Initial documentation research from homepage, FAQ, iMessage setup blog and privacy policy. No hands-on testing.
- 2026-10-24: Setup number updated to +1 (415) 605-3216 (current homepage sms link). New Keiki platform launch noted (customer-facing agent builder across messaging channels). Pricing re-verified from the vendor blog ($29.99/month, no free tier); FAQ re-read (Gmail and Google Calendar today; Outlook, Slack, Notion and Linear still on the way); privacy policy unchanged (16 January 2026).
Documentation overview expanded with current pricing/access sources. No hands-on results claimed.
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