Frequently Asked Questions

Axy is a desktop app for building and exploring knowledge graphs of scientific research. Instead of a folder of papers, you get a map. The concepts in a field are the nodes, the relationships between them are labelled links, and the papers behind each claim sit on the map as evidence. You build the map yourself in Build mode, and review and merge changes the way a software team reviews code. A graph can be private to your organisation, or public for anyone on Axy to read and propose changes to.

Axy starts with the individual researcher, whether you are entering a new field or keeping a living map of one you already know. It grows into a lab tool, because everyone in your organisation can see, contribute to and build on the same graph. A lab's understanding compounds instead of leaving with each postdoc. Public graphs make it useful to open-science communities that want one shared, reviewed map of a field. Axy is built for laptops and desktops, not phones.

No. Anyone can download Axy and start on the Free plan today. There is no waitlist or application. Download the app for your platform, sign in, name your organisation and create your first knowledge graph. If someone has already invited you to their organisation, accept the invitation and you join theirs instead. We talk about what is coming next on our Discord.

Your graphs and paper records live on Axy's own servers in the EU (AWS, Stockholm), encrypted in transit and at rest. A private knowledge graph is visible only to members of your organisation and the people you invite into that graph. A public knowledge graph can be read by anyone with an Axy account. Access to our production systems is limited to a small team and is logged. Our privacy policy has the full detail, including the product analytics and session recordings we use to support you, and how to request or delete your data.

Use the support chat in the app or on this site. Someone from the Axy team replies within one business day. We are online Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 18:00 India time. For quick questions, and to meet other researchers using Axy, join our Discord. For privacy requests, email info@axy-app.com.

Papers are added by DOI. Open a graph's Paper Registry, paste a DOI, and Axy fills in the title, authors, year and abstract from CrossRef. You then attach those papers as evidence to the nodes and links they support. Axy does not store PDFs, and there is no bulk import from Zotero, Mendeley or a reference file yet. Axy also does not read your papers and build the graph for you. You build the map, and the papers back up each claim on it.

A private graph is visible only to your organisation and the people you invite into it. A public graph can be found and read by anyone with an Axy account, and anyone can propose changes to it, but only your organisation's admins decide what gets merged. Public graphs are how a community builds one shared map of a field in the open. The two kinds count against your plan's limits separately, and you can switch a graph between private and public in its settings.

Nobody writes straight into a graph. Everything you change in Build mode is saved into a submission of your own, which you open for review when it is ready. Reviewers see exactly what would change, discuss it in threads, and approve it or ask for revisions. An admin of the graph's organisation then merges it, after Axy checks that the graph has not changed underneath it. That is how a lab keeps one trustworthy graph while many people work on it, and how outsiders can safely propose changes to a public graph.

Reference managers like Zotero or Mendeley organize papers — flat lists of PDFs and citations. Axy organizes knowledge. It maps the concepts inside those papers into a structured graph that captures what a researcher has learned, not just what they have read. The graph is shared, collaborative, and cumulative, so a lab's understanding compounds instead of retiring with each person.

It stays. That is the core problem Axy solves. Today, when a postdoc leaves, their mental model of the field leaves with them. With Axy, the knowledge graph they built is a permanent, shared asset the lab inherits — the next person does not start from scratch, they start from where the last person left off.

Axy runs on macOS 13 Ventura or later (separate Apple Silicon and Intel builds), Windows 10 build 19045 or later (64-bit), and Linux on Ubuntu 22.04+, Fedora 39+ or Debian 12+ (64-bit, as an AppImage). The installer is roughly 100 to 130 MB. Axy needs an internet connection, because your graphs live on Axy's servers rather than on your disk. The download page detects your system and offers the right build first. The other builds are one click away.

On macOS, no warning is expected. Axy is signed and notarised with Apple, so it opens like any other app.

On Windows, yes, for now. Windows shows "Windows protected your PC" because our Windows build is not yet code-signed. Click "More info", then "Run anyway". If your institution manages your machine, IT may need to allow the installer. We are working on signing. Even once the build is signed, Windows may keep warning for a while until enough people have downloaded the app.

On Linux, make the AppImage executable and run it. A checksum for verifying the download is coming to the download page .

No account is needed first. Open Axy and click Login. Your browser opens so you can create an account or sign in, then returns you to the app. If it is your first time and nobody has invited you, Axy asks you to name your organisation, which is the home for your graphs and the people you work with. If you were invited, accept the invitation and you join that organisation instead.

On macOS and Linux, Axy checks for a new version each time it starts and downloads it in the background. When it is ready you see "Relaunch to update", and nothing restarts until you choose to. On Windows, automatic updates are not available until our Windows build is signed. Until then, download the latest version from the download page and install it over the old one. The download link on this site always points at the newest release.

No. Your graphs are stored on Axy's servers so that everyone in your organisation works on the same graph, and every read and write goes through them. You can install Axy offline, but you need to be online to sign in and use it.

Yes. The Free plan costs nothing and gives your organisation one private and one public knowledge graph, which is enough for a solo researcher to build a real map and publish it. The Pro plan is billed per person per month. It raises the limit to ten private and ten public graphs and lets you invite collaborators. Current prices are on the pricing page . There is no trial, because Free is the starting point. Use it as long as you like and upgrade when you have outgrown solo research.

A seat is a person who belongs to your organisation, whether you added them to the organisation or invited them into a single graph. One person is one seat no matter how many graphs they can reach. A seat is reserved the moment you send an invitation. People outside your organisation who read or propose changes to your public graph are never seats and never cost you anything.

Plans belong to the organisation, and only its admins can see billing or change plans. An admin upgrades in the app with a card, paid through Stripe. The month is prepaid and renews on the day you upgraded. Invoices are listed in the app for download. If you need more seats to invite someone, Axy shows the one-off cost for today and your new monthly rate before you confirm. You can update your card or cancel at any time from the billing page. After cancelling, Pro stays active until the end of the period you paid for, and you can reactivate before then.

Nothing is deleted. Your organisation moves to the Free plan, and any graphs beyond the Free limit are archived. The oldest private graph and the oldest public graph stay active, and the rest are put away until you upgrade again. An archived graph keeps all its nodes, links and history. You can still open its settings, delete it, or upgrade to bring it back. Paying again restores everything automatically. If a card payment fails, the switch to Free happens right away while Stripe retries the payment and emails you. A successful retry puts you straight back on Pro.

Their seat stays paid until the end of the current month, and your seat count drops at the next renewal. We do not issue refunds or credits for unused time. That includes deleting your organisation, which cancels billing and ends access for every member immediately.

Not yet. Axy has one paid plan, billed monthly per person. If you are setting up a whole lab or department and need something different, tell us in the support chat.