About
Twenty years of not cutting corners.
The short version of why Offgrid Studio exists: a small tech studio with a blog, two product lines, and one habit of saying plainly what is true and what isn't verified.
Before any of this, I spent twenty years in precision engineering — from engine maintenance to, now, aircraft maintenance in the UK. It's the kind of work with no room for "probably fine." Every torque spec, every inspection, every signature exists because a shortcut you can't see is still a shortcut.
A few years ago I started teaching myself iOS development — Swift, SwiftUI, the whole climb. Not to leave that discipline behind, but to point it somewhere new. The more I looked at how most apps handle personal data — recordings, documents, anything you'd rather keep to yourself — the more it looked like a shortcut nobody talks about: send it to a server "just in case," and hope nothing goes wrong.
Offgrid Studio is the result: a small tech studio. The blog is tech analysis: AI, security, apps, hardware and the legal and economic questions around them. Privacy Apps are four iPhone apps built so the sensitive part of the job, the audio, the transcript, the file, never has a reason to leave your device. Offgrid Tools are connected tools, like Offgrid Locale for App Store listings, that tell you exactly what is sent and where. And games, starting with Yokai Kingdom, are their own thing: they may show optional ads, and each game’s privacy policy says exactly what that involves.
I build the apps with AI tools, and some of them run AI models on your device. I don’t see AI as something to fear or avoid. The useful question is how to use it so it works for you, and where your data ends up is a big part of the answer.
How we write. I use AI tools to research and draft, and I check the facts, sources and numbers before publishing. Where we tested something ourselves, we say so. Where we couldn’t verify a claim, we say that too. Opinions are marked as opinions, and when we make a business or legal point, we say whether we’re qualified to. If something is wrong, tell us and we’ll correct it on the page with a note.
It’s a small studio, still early, still building. I’m Nickel Choi, and I’d rather publish less and stand behind it than publish more and hope nobody checks.
For the Privacy Apps: privacy isn't a feature. It's the only rule we follow.
Questions people ask
Why does Offgrid Studio have separate product lines?
The Privacy Apps keep sensitive work on your device and never send it anywhere. Some jobs, like translating an App Store listing, need a connection, so those live under Offgrid Tools, where we state exactly what is sent. Games show optional ads, so each has its own privacy policy. Same habit of plain statements, different kind of product.
Is the blog about privacy?
Not mainly. Privacy and security come up because we pay close attention to them, but the blog is tech analysis: AI, apps, hardware, and the legal and economic questions around them. The strict on-device rule is a promise about the Privacy Apps, not a rule for every post.
Is the blog written by AI?
AI tools help with research and drafting. I check the facts, sources and numbers before publishing, and I say when we tested something ourselves or couldn’t verify a claim. Posts are not a substitute for legal, financial or security advice.
How do I report a mistake or get in touch?
Email contact@offgridstudio.app. Corrections are made on the page with a note saying what changed.
Read more on how those privacy claims actually hold up in the Privacy Policy, or see what's shipped so far on the home page. OffgridStem and OffgridScribe are also featured alongside other privacy-first apps on Ahmet Furkan Yıldırım's site.