Local-first Mac editor · Early access
A first cut you can trust.
Tightcut is a local macOS video editor operated by AI agents. Its first workflow, Magic Cut, is being built to turn rough talking-head recordings into a reviewable first cut — with you approving every change.
In early development for Apple Silicon Macs. No download yet — be first in line.
The first workflow
Magic Cut, end to end
Import one recording
You will start with a local MP4 or MOV as a Tightcut project. Source media stays immutable — versions store edit decisions, never rewritten video.
Evidence first
Tightcut is being built to ground every proposal in measured evidence: a word-level transcript and silence-gap table produced on your Mac.
The agent proposes
Your connected AI assistant will draft removals — false starts, duplicate takes, standalone fillers, dead air — plus muted speed-ups for genuine visual waits.
Rust verifies
Every boundary will be snapped to clean audio and re-checked. Failed verifications get dropped, never shipped — a troubled run publishes nothing rather than a half-cut.
You review
Each proposal will show its reason, confidence, and surrounding context. You will toggle, resize, or restore any change — correcting the agent beats editing by hand.
Confirm and export
Confirmation will checkpoint the cut so you can always return to it, then export a clean MP4.
Principles
Built for people burned by AI editors
No silent deletions. Tightcut is designed around the AI subscription you already pay for — and to show its work on everything.
- The agent proposes; you remain in control
- Agent edits will arrive as a provisional change set. Nothing is final until you confirm it.
- Every material change is visible
- Each proposal will carry its category, reason, confidence, and source context — inspectable and repairable.
- Non-destructive by construction
- Original media is never modified or duplicated per version. Undo and checkpoints are metadata, not luck.
- Local by default
- Video stays on your Mac. Only a tool you explicitly invoke will ever upload anything — and the app will say so.
Requirements
Runs where your footage lives
- Apple Silicon Mac, running macOS
- Full Xcode with Swift 6 (Command Line Tools alone are not enough)
- rustup and make
Today Tightcut builds from source — make bootstrap, make build, make dev — and the waitlist is for first access to packaged releases.
FAQ
Honest answers, early days
+Can I download Tightcut today?
Not yet. There are no signed public builds, so there is no binary to download. Join the waitlist and you will hear first when early access opens.
+How much will it cost?
Tightcut isn't available yet, so there's nothing to buy. One thing is decided: it is designed around the AI subscription you already pay for.
+Which platforms are supported?
macOS on Apple Silicon only. Windows, Linux, mobile, and browser support are explicitly out of scope.
+What will Magic Cut cut?
Mistakes, false starts, duplicate takes, standalone fillers, and genuine dead air — with a fixed natural pacing designed to keep breathing, cadence, laughter, and punchline beats. Long terminal waits with meaningful visuals will become short muted speed-ups instead of cuts.
+Does my footage leave my Mac?
No. Editing is local by default; only a tool you explicitly invoke ever uploads anything, and the app tells you when that happens.
+Will it replace Premiere or Final Cut?
No. Tightcut produces a trustworthy first cut of talking-head videos, tutorials, and screen recordings — it is not a professional nonlinear-editor replacement.
Early access
Be first in line.
Tightcut isn't available yet. Leave an email if you make talking-head videos, tutorials, or screen recordings on the Mac and want in early.