Own your root.
Every AI has a landlord.
ChatGPT, Gemini, Siri, Copilot — each one lives on someone else's computer, tuned to someone else's business model, quietly holding your identity, your data, and your keys.
You have never owned the root of your own digital life. You rent it — from a login, an account, a cloud that can change its terms, get breached, or be acquired.
VAND Core is the proposed physical root — a key you hold, built on an open security standard instead of an account controlled by VAND.
VAND Core
Classic by intention.
Argent
The everyday edition
Natural metal, black engraving, and almost no decoration. The quiet reference design for the daily-and-reserve set.
- Brushed silver study
- Black recessed mark
- Daily card + reserve card
Noir
The discreet edition
A matte black study with warm ivory engraving. Designed to read as a private object, not a piece of consumer electronics.
- Low-reflection black study
- Warm ivory engraving
- Daily card + reserve card
Heritage
The numbered edition
A warm metal study with restrained numbering and archival packaging. The same root architecture, made to be kept.
- Warm metal study
- Numbered exterior
- Daily card + reserve card
Three layers. One object.
The On-chip Root
A device-bound credential generated inside a certified secure element. The exact vendor and certificate must be verified before VAND makes a security claim.
The Local Vault
Your encrypted VAND vault stays on your computer. The card helps unwrap its key; it does not store your life or run the AI.
Proof of Presence
Insert or tap, enter the card PIN, and touch to approve. Lose the card and your passphrase still opens the vault — hardware never becomes a hostage point.
Six jobs. No mythology.
Unlock VAND offline
Use a physical security key to unwrap the vault key without calling a VAND server.
Carry one. Store one.
The proposed product is a two-card set: a daily key and an independently enrolled reserve.
Lose it without losing your life
Passphrase unlock remains available. A missing or failed card must never erase access to the vault.
Use the interface your device has
USB-C is the desktop path. NFC is for compatible devices; no external reader should be required in the set.
Build on an open standard
The MVP profiles FIDO2 / CTAP2 instead of asking a solo company to invent and secure new silicon.
Prepare for inheritance later
Multi-card inheritance remains a later research phase. The first product will not claim it until it is built and tested.
Software today. Silicon next. A standard after.
VAND
The personal AI. Local-first, private, no accounts. Proves the claim on the machine you already own.
VAND Core
A daily-and-reserve card set based on a certified FIDO2 secure element. Samples and the exact claims must be verified before a sale.
VAND Root
The vault format becomes an open spec — “Markdown for personal AI.” Anyone can build a Root-compatible client.
VAND Inside
Devices ship with a Root-compatible runtime. Your Core boots your AI on anything — inheritable across generations.