Ente: Open-Source, E2E Encrypted, Google Photos Alternative (ente.io)

Ente is an open-source, end-to-end encrypted cloud photo backup and sync service positioned as a privacy-first alternative to Google Photos and iCloud. It delivers cross-platform apps (Android, iOS, Web, macOS, Linux, Windows) plus a CLI, family plans, public/guest links, smart albums, curated “memories,” and standard gallery features (hidden photos, legacy contacts). Key consumer-facing technical points: it preserves original quality and EXIF, supports HEIC and “Live” iPhone photos, does on-device face detection and grouping, and offers natural-language search powered by a “zero-knowledge AI” model. The project is openly developed and has undergone independent cryptographic scrutiny. For the AI/ML community, Ente is notable as a production example of privacy-preserving computer vision and encrypted search in a mass-market product. On-device face detection and grouping plus zero-knowledge NLP search imply client-side inference or encrypted-index techniques that let users query content without exposing raw images or metadata to servers. That model—open-source code, E2EE key management, and a public CLI—makes Ente useful for researchers and engineers interested in private inference, secure indexing, and deployment patterns for ML that keep training/inference data local or cryptographically protected. Its design choices (auditability, cross-platform clients, and shareable encrypted links) make it an instructive case for building user-friendly, privacy-first ML-powered services.