Lumo vs ChatGPT
Lumo is a European alternative to ChatGPT: same ai & machine learning use case, headquartered in Switzerland and operating under GDPR by default, while ChatGPT (OpenAI) is based in the United States.
By the EU Alternatives team Last updated
Privacy-first AI assistant with zero-access encryption that doesn't track or record conversations. Built by Proton for confidential interactions.
- Jurisdiction
- EU / EEA
- GDPR by default
- Yes
- US CLOUD Act exposure
- No
- Open source
- No
- Free tier
- No
ChatGPT is the most widely used AI assistant, with a capable free tier and paid Plus, Team and Enterprise subscriptions. Conversations are processed by OpenAI in San Francisco, and free-tier chats can be used to train future models unless you opt out. Prompts and uploaded files therefore leave EU jurisdiction.
- Jurisdiction
- US
- GDPR by default
- Requires DPA + TIA
- US CLOUD Act exposure
- Yes
Lumo vs ChatGPT at a glance
| Lumo | ChatGPT | |
|---|---|---|
| Headquarters | Switzerland | US |
| Data jurisdiction | EU / EEA | US law applies |
| GDPR by default | Yes | Requires DPA + transfer assessment |
| US CLOUD Act exposure | No | Yes |
| Open source | No | — |
| Free tier | No | — |
| Best for | Teams that need ai & machine learning with EU data residency | Teams already invested in the OpenAI ecosystem |
Choose Lumo if…
- You want your data to stay under EU law without extra legal paperwork
- GDPR compliance or public-sector requirements apply to you
- You'd rather back the European tech ecosystem
Stick with ChatGPT if…
- You depend on integrations only available in the OpenAI ecosystem
- Your organisation has no EU data-residency constraints
- Migration costs outweigh the jurisdiction benefits for now
About Lumo
Lumo is Proton's privacy-first AI assistant built for users who refuse to trade confidentiality for convenience. Conversations stay encrypted and confidential, with no training on user data, no advertising profiles, and no tracking. Lumo delivers general-purpose chat, writing, research, and coding help inside the Proton ecosystem already trusted by millions for email, VPN, and cloud storage.
Built on open-source language models and run on European infrastructure, Lumo encrypts every chat so that even Proton cannot read user conversations. Sessions can be fully ephemeral, with no long-term storage by default, and the assistant integrates with Proton Mail, Drive, and Calendar so users keep one zero-access identity across every Proton service.
Key benefits:
- Zero-access encryption keeps conversations private from Proton and third parties
- No training on your data so questions never feed external AI models
- Ephemeral chats leave no persistent record unless the user opts in
- Open-source models running on Proton-operated European servers
- Proton ecosystem integrates neatly with Mail, Drive, and Calendar
- No ads, no profiling consistent with Proton's long-standing privacy mission
Lumo is operated by Proton AG, headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and runs on Proton's own European data centers under strict Swiss privacy law and GDPR. Proton is ISO 27001 certified and independently audited, offering a sovereign alternative to US-owned chatbots for EU businesses and privacy-sensitive individuals.
Ideal for journalists, lawyers, healthcare professionals, and privacy-conscious users who need a capable AI assistant without surveillance baggage.
Why choose Lumo over ChatGPT?
The decisive argument is data jurisdiction. ChatGPT is headquartered in US, which means personal data processed through it can be subject to non-EU legal regimes: the US CLOUD Act, FISA 702, or similar laws depending on the provider. After the 2020 Schrems II ruling, EU organisations must carry out a transfer impact assessment for every such data flow.
Lumo removes that overhead. As a Switzerland-based provider, it operates natively under GDPR, and data stays inside the EU/EEA by default. For regulated sectors such as health, public administration, and finance, that's not a nice-to-have but a requirement. For everyone else, it's concentration-risk insurance: you avoid depending on a single non-EU jurisdiction that can change the rules without warning.