Velo: AI- Powered Free & Open-source Email Client That Actually Works

Hamza Musa

27 Mar 2026 — 5 min read

What is Velo?

Velo is free and open-source blazing-fast, keyboard-first desktop email client built with Tauri, React, and Rust.

It focuses on privacy as it runs locally, and supports native performative on every desktop system, such as macOS, Linux and Windows.

Why Do We Like Velo?

Your inbox, your rules (Full Privacy Included):

Emails live in a local SQLite database. No sync servers, no telemetry, no "trusted third parties." If it's not on your disk, it doesn't exist.

Mouse? Never met her:

Superhuman-grade keyboard shortcuts let power users triage, archive, and reply at the speed of thought. Perfect for terminal refugees and Vim enthusiasts.

Sandboxed rendering by default:

Remote images blocked, HTML sanitized, messages isolated in iframes. No tracking pixels. No silent exploits. Just clean, safe content.

Rust + Tauri v2 = silent power:

Tiny binary, minimal RAM, instant launch. Built for people who notice when an app wastes cycles, and refuse to tolerate it.

Offline-first isn't a feature, it's the foundation:

Read, search, and draft without a connection. Ideal for travelers, privacy hardliners, and anyone who's ever been burned by flaky Wi-Fi.

Search like a pro:

Full-text indexing with Gmail-style operators (from:, label:, has:attachment). It Combines both local AI with natural-language queries, all processed on-device.

Multi-account, zero compromise:

Switch instantly between Gmail (API), Outlook, Fastmail, iCloud, or any IMAP/SMTP backend. No account linking. No OAuth sprawl. Just clean, isolated access.

AI, on your terms:

Summarize threads or generate replies using your AI provider. Bring your own API key, or plug in a local model. No forced cloud dependency.

Threaded, collapsible, controllable:

Complex conversations stay organized without clutter. For users who manage high-volume inboxes but refuse to sacrifice clarity.

No "smart" features that spy:

Every enhancement respects the local-first promise. If it can't run offline or leaks metadata, it doesn't make the cut.

Velo's Included Features:

Filters to auto-label, archive, trash, star, or mark read
Full-text search with Gmail-style operators (from:, to:, subject:, has:attachment, label:, etc.)
Newsletter bundling with delivery schedules
Drag-and-drop attachments with inline preview
Command palette (/ or Ctrl+K) for quick actions
Send-as email aliases with from-address selector
Threaded conversations with collapsible messages
Smart folders / saved searches with dynamic query tokens
Frequency-ranked contact autocomplete
Undo send, schedule send, auto-save drafts
Inline reply, contact sidebar with Gravatar
One-click unsubscribe (RFC 8058) and subscription manager
Multi-account support: Gmail (API) and IMAP/SMTP (Outlook, Yahoo, iCloud, Fastmail, and more) with instant switching
Quick steps -- custom action chains for batch thread processing
TipTap v3 rich text editor (bold, italic, lists, code, links, images)
Snooze threads with presets or custom date/time
Split inbox with category tabs (Primary, Updates, Promotions, Social, Newsletters)
Multiple signatures, reusable templates with variables
Drag-and-drop labels, multi-select, pin threads, mute threads, context menus
Follow-up reminders when you haven't received a reply
AI + rule-based auto-categorization (Primary, Updates, Promotions, Social, Newsletters)
Google Calendar sync with month, week, and day views. Create events without leaving Velo.
Glassmorphism with animated gradient background
Dark / light / system theme with 8 accent color presets
Flexible reading pane (right, bottom, hidden), resizable panels
Configurable density and font scaling
Pop-out thread windows, custom titlebar, splash screen
System tray with taskbar badge count
OAuth PKCE for Gmail – no client secret, no backend servers
Encrypted password/app-password storage for IMAP accounts (AES-256-GCM)
Remote image blocking with per-sender allowlist
Phishing link detection with 10 heuristic scoring rules
SPF/DKIM/DMARC authentication display with badges and warnings
DOMPurify + sandboxed iframe rendering
AES-256-GCM encrypted token storage
OAuth PKCE for Gmail – no client secret, no backend servers
mailto: deep links, global compose shortcut
Autostart (hidden in tray), single instance
Encrypted password/app-password storage for IMAP accounts (AES-256-GCM)
Remote image blocking with per-sender allowlist
Phishing link detection with 10 heuristic scoring rules
SPF/DKIM/DMARC authentication display with badges and warnings
DOMPurify + sandboxed iframe rendering
AES-256-GCM encrypted token storage