PEARL / RELEASES
12 releases
in 33 days.
PEARL ships often. Each release below says what changed. Installers for every platform, with their checksums, are on the download page; the Mac apps are signed and notarized by Apple.
For macOS, Windows, and Linux
1.2.9Latest, Oct 26, 2026
12Releases since Sep 23, 2026
5Installers: Apple Silicon, Intel Mac, Windows, Linux AppImage and .deb
Every release
Click a version to see what changed in it.
1.2.9Figures in summaries, exact citations in any style, LaTeX checked as you type
- NewShow the paper’s own figures in summaries, under Motivation, Methodology, Results and Limitations
- NewCheck a paper’s details against doi.org, NCBI and OpenAlex, and format citations in any CSL style
- NewCheck LaTeX as you type: problems are marked on their lines, ChkTeX adds style hints, and Tab completes commands and \begin environments
- AddedClose, reorder and split the assistant’s tabs; ⌥⌘1–3 switches between them and ⌥⇧⌘T reopens a closed one
- AddedStar the projects you are working on, archive finished ones and filter the home screen by All, Active or Archived
- AddedChoose your research field to get conference suggestions from over a thousand venues beyond computer science
- AddedLet the assistant suggest papers for a project, added only when you approve them
- AddedKeep restricted-data projects on local models only, with an AI use statement
- AddedBuild an evidence table across a project’s papers, with page citations checked against the text
- FixedRun one LaTeX build at a time, so “Built in 0.1 s”, missing citations and a broken PDF preview no longer appear
- FixedShow each conference suggestion on one line, match venues correctly and link to Google with the venue’s year
- FixedZoom the window when you double-click the home top bar
- FixedHarden LaTeX builds, sign-in tokens, links and downloads after a security audit
- ImprovedShow a new paper’s text first and finish equations and reference marks in the background
- ImprovedOpen Settings → Connections faster
- ImprovedPlan active projects first in Today
- ImprovedName ChatGPT and Claude, and list providers as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, OpenRouter, Ollama, LM Studio
1.2.8Steadiest release yet, a cheaper model for quick tasks, Today and Conferences, citation tools, Intel Macs
- NewPlan your day around your calendar and deadlines with Today: morning and evening check-ins and upcoming conference deadlines (switch it on in Settings → Today)
- NewRun quick tasks (Today, Define, Explain, a highlight’s question, Grill’s answer checks) on a cheaper model: Haiku with Claude Code or Luna with ChatGPT
- NewInstall PEARL on Intel Macs running macOS 13 or later
- AddedTime your work with a focus timer in the title bar and menu bar, and see what you got done on the Growth page
- AddedImport EndNote, Mendeley, JabRef and other reference files
- AddedCopy a citation in APA 7, ASA, APSA, Chicago or Harvard
- AddedFlag retracted and corrected papers, checked against Crossref
- AddedDraw a PRISMA 2020 flow diagram from the project home
- AddedExport highlights and notes for NVivo, ATLAS.ti and MAXQDA
- AddedGive the agent science sources: Europe PMC, World Bank, Our World in Data, OSF, Dataverse, DataCite, ERIC, Zenodo and Eurostat, with BioMCP, Open Targets and ToolUniverse as add-ons
- AddedSign in to Claude, ChatGPT, Google and Cursor without a terminal
- AddedUse OpenRouter as a provider
- AddedDouble-click the PDF in Write to jump to the LaTeX, and back
- AddedInstall a LaTeX engine from Write
- AddedSave the PDF you are reading to PEARL with the browser extension or a bookmarklet
- AddedSend feedback or report an issue from the Help menu
- FixedKeep both changes when two settings save at the same moment, and copy a damaged settings file aside before writing over it
- FixedRefuse data from a newer PEARL with a clear message instead of downgrading it
- FixedMake one paper when the same PDF is uploaded twice at once, and refuse files that are not PDFs
- FixedLeave nothing behind when a zip import fails
- FixedHandle accents and other non-English text on Windows, and end everything PEARL started when it quits
- FixedStart the AppImage on Ubuntu 24.04
- FixedShow tray icons in the installed app
- FixedKeep the home header, conference list and PDF toolbar from overlapping in narrow windows
- FixedKeep a typed note when Esc is pressed once
- FixedKeep embedding models out of the chat model list
- ImprovedAsk Grill’s questions in the order an advisor would, and end with a reflection and what to read next
- ImprovedKeep keys encrypted with your system’s keychain
- ImprovedBuild LaTeX with MiKTeX when Perl is not installed
- ImprovedList Calendars and GitHub in Settings → Connections
1.2.7Streaming answers, faster local models, agent tasks that cannot hang
- NewStream chat answers as they are written with Ollama and Claude Code
- AddedStop an agent task after 3 minutes of silence or 30 minutes of work, without counting time spent waiting for your approval
- FixedLet the agent read your project’s papers and notes in the installed app
- FixedFollow Grill’s rules with local models, so passed answers count and the session ends on time
- FixedApply a Write with AI change when the spacing or a word differs slightly
- FixedStop and retry a local summary that trails off into blank space, and end an Ollama reply as soon as you press Stop
- FixedKeep a note’s line endings through edits and Undo
- FixedPick the sentences that actually define a term in Define
- ImprovedKeep the Ollama model loaded between questions, so a long paper’s answer takes about 5 seconds instead of 20
- ImprovedSummarize a paper with Claude in about 26 seconds instead of 45
- ImprovedOpen a new paper to read while its summary is still running
- ImprovedMove the project home’s explanations behind ⓘ
1.2.6The agent window: Claude Code, Codex or Gemini working on your project
- NewWork on a project with Claude Code, Codex or Gemini CLI in the agent window, using your own sign-in
- AddedReview every change the agent makes, with Keep, Undo, a diff and Restore
- AddedChoose how much the agent asks first: Ask, Auto-edit, Full access, or Plan
- AddedPick the agent’s model and effort, and switch them part-way through a task
- AddedType / to run a research skill and @ to attach a paper, note or file
- AddedSee your version on the home screen and in Settings, with “Update available” as soon as one is found
- FixedSummarize papers with Codex on Windows and Linux
- ImprovedKeep the agent inside the project: it can change the project folder, code and Write files, and its commands run sandboxed
1.2.5Paper summaries with Codex fixed
- FixedSummarize papers with Codex when it describes a paper in words or as a list, instead of failing with “not in the shape PEARL needs”
1.2.4Updates download and install from inside the app
- NewWatch an update download in the title bar and install it with Restart to update, or the next time you quit
- AddedCheck for Updates… in the PEARL menu (under Help on Windows and Linux)
1.2.3Move a paper to another Overleaf project from Write
- AddedChange or unlink a paper’s Overleaf project from the ⋯ beside Push in Write, keeping your files
- FixedStop reading a file after a pull removes it
1.2.2Write by chatting beside the PDF, an artifacts library, a quieter Settings
- NewWrite by chatting beside the PDF: changes are applied with Undo, and a build error has Fix with AI
- NewKeep what the assistant writes in an artifacts library, with versions, revisions and export in every format
- AddedSign in with Zotero instead of pasting a key
- AddedConnect Overleaf with a token picked up from the clipboard
- AddedRender Markdown tables in chat and notes
- FixedSummarize with Codex and Claude Code on Windows when a paper has unusual characters
- ImprovedLay out Write like Overleaf, with file tabs, folding panels and a History page that shows your coauthors’ commits
- ImprovedRearrange Settings: a larger sheet, a System theme, and a Connections table that includes bioRxiv
- ImprovedSimplify the project home to setup, Grill progress, tools, and outputs and export
- ImprovedMake summaries quicker and cheaper
1.2.1A code workspace in every project, and new reading aids
- NewAdd a code workspace to a project: connect or clone a repository, edit files, use source control and chat across the code
- NewOpen terminals in a project, split them or go full screen; Claude Code, Codex and Gemini CLI start there
- AddedJump between sections with the paper’s contents beside the page
- AddedSee every place the paper uses a term
- AddedMark citations to papers that are already in the project
- AddedAsk Explain this about a passage and get the answer beside it, a hint first
- AddedHighlight the sentences that carry a paper with Skim (experimental)
- FixedOpen links in your browser instead of a new PEARL window
- ImprovedTake paper titles from the PDF at import, and switch papers without waiting on a parse
1.2.0A LaTeX workspace with Overleaf, and Grill me on any paper
- NewGrill yourself on a paper: ten questions in rising depth, then a score and your two weakest spots
- NewWrite your paper in a LaTeX workspace with the PDF beside it, versions, track changes, and push and pull with Overleaf
- AddedConnect Obsidian vaults and Notion pages, and let chat read the notes you pick
- AddedShow chat and notes side by side
- AddedAdd a Highlights tab for the open paper
- AddedConnect a zotero.org library with an API key
- AddedGenerate a summary from a paper’s Summary tab
- AddedAdd a title bar with a Home button
- ImprovedSet a project up from its home: a checklist, the goal and brief, and its tools
- ImprovedBring in the PDF whenever an arXiv link is added
- ImprovedRun LM Studio models with the context they were loaded with, keep reasoning off unless Thinking is on, and say why a reply ran out of room
- RemovedRemove Research and Depth modes, the synthesis and the exam: Grill replaces them, and the Summary is never locked
1.1.0Annotations, previews, research skills, exports, Office and Zotero
- NewRead with a reader bar: zoom, themes, find, read aloud, and highlight, underline, note, draw and add text
- NewMention any paper with @ in chat, and follow answers that point to the exact place in the paper
- NewCheck every answer: references looked up, numbers recomputed, and Check claims on request
- AddedPreview citations, tables, figures and equations on hover, and find any paper in the references
- AddedDefine a term or explain an equation from the paper’s own words, and keep a project glossary
- AddedMake tables, Word, LaTeX and PDF documents, figures and a .bib from chat
- AddedRun research skills: agreement map, reviewer lens, claims ledger, decision log and more
- AddedSearch the web from any model
- AddedWrite into Word, PowerPoint and Excel, even while the file is open
- AddedConnect Gemini Notebook, Zotero and Office in one place
- AddedRead the mathematics in imported papers on every platform
- AddedKeep a copy of every output in a project folder
- AddedAdd a paper by DOI, arXiv id, link or title, and export a project as one .zip
- AddedStart with a short setup, and see What’s new after each update
- FixedKeep the current paper on screen until the next one is drawn
1.0.0First public preview
- NewOrganize papers into projects, read and annotate the PDFs, and chat about them, with papers and models kept on your computer
- AddedImport PDFs and a local Zotero library, with search, highlights and notes
- AddedGround each extracted claim in a quote from the paper
- AddedSee which papers chat will use before you send
- AddedExplain a selected passage or highlight
- AddedWrite a six-section synthesis, saved as you type
- AddedTake an exam on a paper, with targeted review after a failed attempt
- AddedChallenge an idea against prior work found on OpenAlex
- AddedExport Markdown and citations
- AddedRun on local Ollama models, with optional MCP tools and Gemini Notebook