VIRGIL

Support

Help, answers, and how to reach a human.

Virgil is a mindmap web browser for the Mac, made by Introspective Labs. If something is broken, confusing, or missing, we would like to hear about it — this page is where to start.

Ask a question or report a problem

Getting started

Take the tour

Virgil works differently from a tabbed browser, so it will show you around. Choose Help → Product Tour at any time. The tour runs on a practice map that Virgil creates and then tidies away afterwards, so it never touches your own maps.

What is a map, and what is a topic?

Instead of tabs, Virgil arranges browsing visually. A map is a workspace (you can have several, and they keep separate logins/sessions). A topic is one thread of browsing on that map. Within a topic, pages group by website automagically. Following a link extends the map accordingly rather than replacing what you were reading.

Bringing over bookmarks and open tabs

Go to Settings → Default Browser → Import from another browser. Virgil imports bookmarks and open tabs from Chrome, Brave and Firefox, and organises them into topics for you. On the App Store version, macOS asks you to point Virgil at the other browser's profile folder — that prompt is the permission step, and Virgil can only read the folder you choose.

Making Virgil your default browser

Open Settings → Default Browser and click the button to set Virgil as the default. macOS will ask you to confirm. The same section controls where links from other apps land: on the map you are currently using, or on your Default map.

Frequently asked questions

Where is my browsing data kept?

On your Mac, and nowhere else. Virgil has no accounts, no analytics, and no tracking; your history, maps, pins and saved passwords never reach us. The privacy policy sets out the handful of cases in which anything leaves your computer — all of them either optional or initiated by you.

Why is a website asking for my location, camera, or microphone?

Because Virgil is a web browser, and the site you are visiting asked for it — a map wanting your location, a video call wanting your camera and microphone. Virgil itself does not use any of them.

• Location. Virgil asks you the first time each site requests it and remembers your answer for that site; macOS then asks separately for Location Services. Review or change per-site answers in Settings → Privacy & Security → Location, and the system-level permission in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Location Services.
• Camera and microphone. The request is passed on to macOS, which asks you the first time and holds your answer in System Settings → Privacy & Security → Camera (and Microphone), where it can be withdrawn at any time.
• Notifications. Same as location: Virgil asks per site and remembers, under Settings → Privacy & Security → Notifications.

Do I need an AI subscription?

No subscription, but Virgil does work better with an AI service configured, because it is what names your topics for you. Without one, new topics are simply called "Topic" until you rename them yourself. There are two ways to set one up, both under Settings → AI Features:

• Apple Intelligence — free, and runs entirely on your Mac. Needs macOS 26 or later on Apple silicon, with Apple Intelligence turned on in System Settings.
• Your own API key for Anthropic or OpenAI. This also enables the heavier features — the assistant, page summaries and map reorganisation — which are beyond the on-device model.

Everything else works with no AI at all: browsing, pins, maps, history, search across your pages, on-device page translation, and importing from another browser.

How do I get updates?

If you installed from the Mac App Store, the App Store updates Virgil along with everything else. If you downloaded Virgil from this site, it checks for new versions itself and offers them to you; you can also choose Virgil → Check for Updates.

What are the system requirements?

A Mac running macOS 14 (Sonoma) or later, on Apple silicon or Intel. Virgil is currently Mac-only — there is no Windows, iPhone or iPad version.

I closed a topic or a page by mistake.

Nothing is deleted outright unless you explicitly delete an entire map. Press ⌘Z to undo the last close, unpin or filing on the current map. Older material is still reachable through the timeline slider at the bottom of the map, which lets you look at any earlier state and bring a topic or page back from it.

Are my saved passwords safe?

Passwords are stored in the macOS Keychain, the same place Safari keeps them, so they are visible in the Passwords app and can sync through iCloud Keychain if you use it. Credit cards and addresses are encrypted with a key held in your Mac's Secure Enclave. None of it is ever sent to us.

A site behaves oddly in Virgil.

Virgil uses WebKit, the same engine as Safari, so the first useful check is whether Safari does the same thing — if it does, it is the site rather than Virgil. Either way, please tell us the URL; site-specific fixes are a normal part of our release cycle.

How do I remove Virgil and all its data?

Drag the app to the Trash. To remove everything it saved, also delete the com.virgil.browser folder inside ~/Library/Application Support (App Store installations keep it inside ~/Library/Containers/com.virgil.browser instead). Anything you shared or published can be withdrawn from within the app beforehand.

Something else

If your question is not here, please use the feedback form and we will get back to you. Feature requests are welcome too.