Cloud sync is a feature you’re paying for with your privacy

Open a new app. Create an account. Verify your email. Choose a plan. Grant permissions. Now you can take notes. This is the default in 2026. And most developers just accept it. I've been building local-first terminal tools for a while now, and the more I do it, the more convinced I am that the industry defaulted to cloud sync not because it's better for users, but because it's better for retention metrics and business models. The user pays with their data, their privacy, and their dependency. Th