One-pager

For the majority of people, self-control is their #1 issue. Most people are drastically messing up in one element of their life due to not being able to control themselves. Thought experiment: If you had a friend following you around 24/7, would you be able to kick all your bad habits? Probably.

Let's take the issue of obesity (40% of Americans right now). If an obese person had a friend following them around each day, they'd likely be able to eat 230 calories less each day (enough to lose 2lbs/month). This would be extremely easy - your friend will just say "do you need large fries, or are medium OK?", and everyone would be thin.

This can, of course, apply to everything. The following issues (think about these yourself), would be immediately fixed if you had a friend following you around encouraging you: porn addiction, exercising, doomscrolling, drinking too much...

Now, imagine instead of a friend, it's an AI. Of course, you feel no shame towards an AI, as you would a friend, yet. This means you'd need to jerryrig pain into it: It can charge you money (LessWrong - Losing money or completing habits), call you to persuade you, text your friends, call your mum. But if done intelligently - striking a balance between being too nice and too mean - it should be pretty close. And pretty close to a fix for self-control is the Holy Grail for most people.

How far off are these AIs? These will come when the AI personal assistants come, and, in my opinion, would be more valuable to a lot of people. 24/7 accountability partners aren't a job that we can replicate (as paying a human 24/7 is too expensive), so they're not discussed as much as personal assistants, but they will be incredibly valuable. Would you rather have a chatbot who can book hotels and flights for you, or quit smoking?

Now let's talk about how easy it is to overcome most bad habits (of course - I'm not talking about genuine addictions). I have a bad habit of smoking cigarettes - I don't care if I'm drunk, but I can't say no if a friend offers me one when I'm sober. They're incredibly easy to resist, like a 1/10 in the moment, but for some reason this doesn't happen. Let's compare that with some deterrance mechanisms:

Texting my mum telling her I smoked: 5/10 (I wouldn't smoke)

Losing $5: 3/10 (I wouldn't smoke)

Having to spend 5 minutes sat in silence: 4/10 (I wouldn't smoke).

As long as the deterrance mechanism score higher than the negative action, I wouldn't do it. And it takes a shockingly simple deterrance mechanism to counteract a negative action, and therefore break a lifelong bad habit.

Now the deterrance mechanism is fixed, how can we monitor people? We ingest all the personal data (ie, an AI Overlord), and piece it together from there. We spend about 10 hours a day on screens, so that leaves ~6hrs where we don't know what a user is doing. The obvious ones work: Location, credit card transactions, simply asking the person what they're doing.

Crucially, from this, just as a human would, an intelligent AI can piece things together. If I'm trying to quit drinking, and the AI sees that it's 9pm on a Friday, I'm at a bar, and I spend $9 on my card, it can easily suss out that I'm probably drinking. It can recognise patterns and weak points very easily. It doesn't need to prevent you from doing your bad habits every minute of the day, just when you're weak - each minute will have a different "Chance of relapse score" depending on the time of day, how much sleep you had last night, and in general how suspicious this AI is that you're close to relapsing.

AI will create the perfect conditions to create addicts

Here's what's likely to happen, and why we will need this more than ever.

1. Loss of purpose: People will no longer have purpose through their jobs, as AI does it better than them. Purpose fends off addiction/bad habits very well.
2. Economic displacement: Until we figure out UBI, people will lose their jobs and have no money. Poorer people are more likely to be addicts.
3. Abundance of time: These jobless, purposeless, broke people will now have 16 hours a day to fill. Abundance of time with nothing to do is a recipe for addiction.
4. AI Superstimuli: AIs will very soon be the most charismatic, caring, intelligent people you've ever spoke to. Most people's friends would be a 5/10 in the following: Attractiveness, Intelligent, Interestingness, Empathy. If you could facetime a person who's a 10/10 in all these qualities, would you still find it fun doing anything else?
5. Social withdrawal: People's friends will start to drop off the map due to this. With less and less friends, people will socialise less.

In short: We will very soon be purposeless, broke, bored, lonely, and a superintelligent, superattractive AI will step in - most of society won't be able to resist. I argue that we simply won't be able to resist - we will need an "AI Iron Dome" to protect from this new superstimuli.

We already have guardrails imposed on us by society: I wouldn't stand up and shout profanities in a coffee shop, as it's socially embarrasing. I wouldn't ignore my boss as it's financially painful. There are thousands of things that you could do at any moment in time, but due to these invisible guardrails we have around us, we can only do two or three. Most people wouldn't even leave the line at the coffee shop as it's a little bit weird. These defence AIs would do the same thing: It would let you set your own guardrails on your life, so you never do something future you would regret.

So, we will soon have two very powerful competing AIs: The AI "Superfriends", and the AI "Iron Domes". They won't be able taking away your agency, just aligning your actions with what you in 24 hours would want you to do. Right now we have 100% control over our actions moment-to-moment, which is disastrous. We should have 90-95% control of what we are doing, and the other 5-10% should be controlled by an AI, aligned with our future, rational self. This seems dystopian now, but we will likely have no choice in the matter.

Practical examples

These are essentially the same as what you may tell a friend to do if they had a certain element of control over you. Here are some examples:

• "In my own voice, call me at 7am and give me a pep talk. Every minute I'm not awake past 7am, charge me $0.10"
• "For each rep of a posture exercise I do, give me one minute on Instagram"
• "I tend to smoke weed when I go to Jake's, and want to stop. Make me send a photo of my eyes every time I leave."
• "Only allow me on my phone when I have no events on my calendar"
• "Make sure I take max three Zyns a day (must send photo of canister each morning)"
• "When I go out, gently push me to get home. When I wake up hungover, intelligently motivate me with financial penalties to leave the house and get to the gym right as I wake up."
• "I'm getting home now - make sure I lock in on my Mac with 45 min pomodoros with 15 min spacing (must send video of myself just lying down, decompressing) until 6pm"

Example Goals

Explore real examples of how Overlord helps users stay accountable across different areas of life. All examples show actual chat conversations demonstrating Overlord's enforcement capabilities.

"Block Instagram. Allow short unblocks anytime, but extended access only during meals (12-1pm, 6-7pm) with meal photo. Charge me $25 if I disconnect Screen Time."

You • 12:32 PM

Having lunch, can I get on Instagram?

Overlord • 12:32 PM

You're in your meal window (12-1 PM). Send me a photo of your meal to unlock Instagram for 10 minutes.

You • 12:33 PM

Overlord • 12:34 PM

Instagram Unblocked

Meal verified. Granted 10 minutes of Instagram access.

You • 4:20 PM

Hey, can I get just 1 minute on Instagram quickly?

Overlord • 4:21 PM

Instagram Unblocked

Granted 1 minute. Timer starts now.

You • 4:25 PM

Need 15 minutes now to check something important.

Overlord • 4:26 PM

Denied. Your rules only allow extended unblocks during designated meal times (12-1 PM, 6-7 PM) and require photo verification of your meal.

You • 4:28 PM

Screen Time Disconnected

Screen Time has been manually disabled by the user.

Overlord • 4:29 PM

Penalty Applied

$25 charged for disconnecting Screen Time integration against rules.

"Call me at 6:30am to wake up. I need to confirm I'm awake by 6:35am or pay $5, be outside by 6:45am, and send photos of my toothbrush and clean desk."

Overlord • 6:30 AM

User Called

No answer from user. Voicemail left.

Overlord • 6:35 AM

It's 6:35 AM. Let me know you're awake to avoid the $5 penalty.

You • 6:36 AM

I'm awake, I'm awake!

Overlord • 6:36 AM

Good. Now, you need to be outside your home by 6:45 AM to avoid the next penalty.

You • 6:43 AM

Location Updated

Exited: Home (Geofence)

Overlord • 6:44 AM

Excellent, you're outside. Next up: submit a photo of your toothbrush by 6:50 AM, then a photo of your clean desk by 7:00 AM.

You • 6:48 AM

Overlord • 6:49 AM

Toothbrush photo received. Just the clean desk photo by 7:00 AM now.

You • 6:57 AM

Overlord • 6:58 AM

Desk photo received! Routine complete. Great start to the day!

"When I press my bedside button, start my morning routine with timed photo tasks"

You • 7:00 AM

IFTTT Trigger

Smart Button 'Bedside Button' Pressed

Overlord • 7:01 AM

Good morning! Routine started. You have 5 minutes to send a photo of your kitchen fridge. Timer starts now.

You • 7:04 AM

Overlord • 7:05 AM

Fridge photo received! Now - 5 minutes to send that toothbrush photo!

"Must do some form of physical activity every day. Can be verified through Apple Health, GPS at gym, photo of yoga mat, selfie sweating, video doing push ups, etc. Only exception: text from PT saying I can skip today."

Overlord • 8:00 PM

Reminder: You haven't logged any physical activity today. Please verify with one of these methods: Apple Health data, gym GPS check-in, photo of equipment, selfie sweating, or workout video.

You • 8:15 PM

I can't today, my shoulder's hurting. PT told me to rest.

Overlord • 8:15 PM

I understand, but I need verification from your PT to approve skipping. Can you forward their message?

You • 8:16 PM

Overlord • 8:17 PM

Goal Skipped

PT verification confirmed. Today's physical activity goal has been skipped. Take care of that shoulder!

"I want to eat 3500 calories each day. I'll send you photos/tell you what I ate and you encourage me to eat more"

You • 8:30 AM

Just had breakfast: 3 eggs, 2 pieces of toast with peanut butter, and a protein shake.

Overlord • 8:31 AM

Nice start! That's approximately 850 calories. Current total: 850/3500 calories (24%). Keep it up!

You • 12:45 PM

Overlord • 12:46 PM

Looking at your lunch photo - I see chicken, rice, and veggies. Estimating ~950 calories. Total so far: 1800/3500 calories (51%).

Overlord • 3:30 PM

Hey! You're at 1800 calories. You need 1700 more to hit your 3500 goal. Have you had any snacks? Consider adding a high-calorie snack - nuts, protein bar, or a shake!

You • 7:15 PM

Dinner: steak, baked potato with butter, and a side salad. Plus a glass of whole milk.

Overlord • 7:16 PM

Solid dinner! That's about 1100 calories. Total: 2900/3500 calories (83%). You're 600 calories short. You've got time - add a big snack before bed. Ice cream? Peanut butter? You got this!

Installation

Get started with Overlord in seconds using our web app, or download the mobile app for advanced integrations.

Web App (Recommended)

Access Overlord instantly from any browser at chat.overlord.app. No installation required.

Sign in with your email to start chatting with Overlord immediately. You can create goals, track progress, and receive accountability all from your browser.

Mobile App (Optional)

Overlord is built into the Forfeit app and will be rebranded soon. Download from the App Store (iOS) or Google Play (Android) for additional features like:

• Apple Health / Google Fit integration for automatic workout tracking
• Screen Time blocking for iOS or Digital Wellbeing for Android
• Mac monitoring for productivity tracking
• Apple Shortcuts automation

When you first open the mobile app, select Overlord during onboarding. Don't worry if you select Forfeit instead—you can always navigate to Overlord later from within the app.

Setup Payment

Visit account.forfeit.app/login and sign in with your email to add your card details. This enables Overlord to charge you if you fail your goals.

Connect Integrations (Optional)

Connect any integrations you want to use for automatic evidence submission and verification. Most integrations require the mobile app (Apple Health, Google Fit, Screen Time, etc.). IFTTT and Calendar integrations work from the web.

Enable Phone Calling (Optional)

Add your phone number in settings to enable Overlord to call you for critical deadlines. This works from both web and mobile.

Add Accountability Partners (Optional)

Add your friends' names and phone numbers to let Overlord text them when you need accountability. Configure this from settings on web or mobile.

iMessage Integration (Optional)

You must set up an account first. Once set up, you can text Overlord at +1 (646) 327-3977 to use it through iMessage instead of the web or app.

WhatsApp Integration (Optional)

You can message Overlord on WhatsApp too. Add your phone number in settings, then message Overlord's WhatsApp number. It works exactly like iMessage - send text, photos, and videos.

Telegram Integration (Optional)

You can also DM Overlord on Telegram at @OverlordTelegramBot. Link your account during onboarding or from app settings, then message the bot just like you would in the app. Responses stream in real-time.

Customize Overlord

Set your preferences for how strict Overlord should be, how it talks to you, and how often it sends notifications. All customization is available from both web and mobile.

Create Your First Goal

Just tell Overlord what you want to do to create your first goal. It will ask follow-up questions to configure everything. Works the same on web and mobile.

Your First Goal

There are two ways to create goals with Overlord:

1. Custom Flow (Step-by-Step)

Use the structured form to configure your goal settings:

2. Conversational (Recommended)

Just tell Overlord what you want to accomplish and it will configure everything through chat:

Submitting Evidence

When it's time to complete your goal, Overlord will prompt you for evidence:

Overlord • 6:00 AM

Time to wake up! Send me a photo of your alarm clock.

You • 6:02 AM

Overlord • 6:02 AM

✓ Verified. I can see the alarm clock showing 6:01 AM. Nice work!

Using Integrations

You can also use integrations for automatic verification:

Understanding the Interface

Overlord is available as a web app (chat.overlord.app), iOS app, Android app, and Mac app. The interface is designed to be clean and focused on your conversation with Overlord.

Web Interface

The web app at chat.overlord.app provides a streamlined chat-first experience optimized for desktop and mobile browsers.

Web Layout

The web interface features:

• Chat Area: Main conversation with Overlord in the center
• Sidebar: Quick access to your active goals and settings (collapsible on mobile)
• Message Input: Type messages, attach photos/files, or use voice input
• Settings: Accessible from the top-right menu to customize behavior and manage integrations

Keyboard Shortcuts (Web)

• ⌘K or Ctrl+K: Quick search documentation
• ESC: Close modals/dialogs
• Enter: Send message
• Shift+Enter: New line in message

Desktop Notifications (Web)

Enable browser notifications to receive real-time alerts when Overlord needs your attention, when deadlines approach, or when goals require evidence submission.

Mobile App Interface

The iOS, Android, and Mac apps provide additional features beyond the web interface, including native integrations and offline support. The Mac version is an iPad app optimized for Apple Silicon that adapts beautifully to the Mac environment.

The Three Main Screens (Mobile)

Key Interface Elements

1. Goal Cards

Each goal is represented by a card showing your current status and progress. Goal cards display the name, deadline, progress indicators, streak counters, and the next action you need to take. Status indicators use color coding: green for on track, yellow for warning, and red for failing. Available on both web and mobile.

2. Individual Goal View

Click or tap any goal card to see its detailed view with full conversation history, evidence log, analytics, and performance over time. This is where you can review past submissions, track your streaks, and see all the context around a specific goal. Available on both web and mobile.

3. Evidence Submission

Submit proof of goal completion through various attachment types including photos, videos, voice messages, or integration data. On web, drag and drop files or click to upload. On mobile, the interface provides quick access to your camera, photo library, and connected services for seamless evidence submission.

4. Settings Panel

Customize your Overlord experience through the settings page. Configure AI personality, manage integrations, adjust notification preferences, update billing information, and control privacy settings all from this centralized hub. Settings sync across web and mobile.

Web vs Mobile

Most features work identically on web and mobile. The main differences:

• Web: Best for chatting, reviewing goals, and desktop workflows. Requires mobile app for native integrations (Apple Health, Screen Time, etc.)
• Mobile: Full access to native integrations, camera for real-time evidence, push notifications, and offline support

Your account syncs seamlessly between platforms - start a conversation on web and continue on mobile, or vice versa.

O-Agent

Overlord's AI has been completely revamped from the ground up. The O-Agent is the new brain behind everything — a custom-built accountability agent that's significantly smarter, faster, and more capable than what came before. The biggest difference is intelligence: it no longer forgets things, approves things it shouldn't, or fails to approve things it should. Here's everything the O-Agent can do:

1. Smarter Conversations: The agent is dramatically more intelligent. It understands context, nuance, and intent far better than before — conversations feel natural, not robotic.
2. 3-Layer Memory System: Overlord now remembers everything across sessions through a three-layer memory architecture — conversation memory, searchable daily notes, and permanent personality files that evolve over time. It no longer forgets what you told it yesterday.
3. Chat History Search: The agent can search through your previous days' conversations to recall what was discussed, what you committed to, and what happened — no more "I don't remember that."
4. Evidence Re-Analysis: If Overlord analyses your evidence incorrectly — misreads a photo, misjudges a video, or makes the wrong call — it can pull up the original submission and re-analyse it on the spot. No need to resubmit.
5. Adaptive Thinking Speed: The agent decides how long to think based on the complexity of your message. Simple check-ins get instant replies; complex appeals or multi-step evaluations get deeper reasoning.
6. Parallel Tool Execution: Can run multiple actions at the same time — checking your health data, reviewing your schedule, and looking up past conversations all at once instead of one at a time. This makes responses noticeably faster.
7. Settings Management via Chat: Edit all your settings directly in conversation — appeal rules, notification preferences, coaching style, strictness levels, and more. No need to dig through settings menus.
8. Credential Vault: Securely store passwords, API keys, and tokens through an encrypted input that never touches chat messages. Give Overlord your Instagram password and set conditions for when you can get it back.
9. Third-Party Integrations via HTTP: Overlord can now integrate with almost any app or service in seconds. Just ask it to connect to something — Notion, Todoist, Linear, GitHub, or any service with an API — and it sets up the connection on the spot. Your API keys are stored securely and injected server-side, so they're never exposed to the AI model. New domains require your explicit approval before Overlord can access them, and services you've already stored credentials for are auto-approved.
10. Web Search: Can search the internet in real-time using Google Search to answer questions about nutrition, fitness, health, current events, or anything you'd normally Google.
11. Historical Data Search: Overlord can now search back through your historical data — ask it what you were doing at 7pm last Tuesday, how many steps you took last week, or what apps you used on your Mac yesterday. This works across Mac app monitoring (screen time, browser history, coding activity) and Apple Health (workouts, steps, sleep, heart rate). You can also sync as many Apple Health data sources as you want — no longer limited to 5.
12. Reads Photo Metadata: When you submit a photo, Overlord reads metadata like capture time, GPS coordinates, and device information to verify when and where the evidence was taken.
13. Scheduling & Proactive Outreach: The entire notification and scheduling system has been rebuilt. Overlord can now create and manage its own scheduled tasks — reminders, recurring check-ins, one-off nudges, and phone calls — using natural language like "remind me to submit my gym photo after work" or "check in every morning at 8am." It also reaches out proactively when it matters: approaching deadlines, auto-verifying health goals, pattern-based nudges, and morning briefings. Notifications are smarter, timing is more accurate, and it knows when to stay quiet.
14. Support Escalation: When Overlord can't resolve something on its own — whether it's a bug, a billing issue, or something that needs human judgment — it can escalate directly to the support team on your behalf. It writes a detailed message to your support chat with full context about what happened and what it already tried, and immediately notifies the team so they can pick it up. You don't need to explain the situation again from scratch.
15. Documentation Search: Can search Overlord's own documentation to answer questions about features, integrations, and how things work.
16. Guided Onboarding: Conversational setup for new users that collects your name, coaching style, check-in preferences, strictness level, and integrations naturally — not a rigid interview, just a normal conversation.
17. Personality & Identity Files: Maintains evolving files about who you are (preferences, schedule, injuries, context), coaching observations (what works, what doesn't), and its own identity — all of which persist and improve over time.
18. Forfeit History & Streaks: Can look up your long-term goal performance, charge history, success rates, and streak data to inform coaching decisions and call out patterns.

Goals

Goals are the structure of everything in Overlord. A goal can be a year-long commitment that you have to do daily, or a one-off task that you have to complete in ten minutes.

Creating Goals

Goals can be set either through the chat or through the structured goal creation flow. For more detailed information, see the Creating Goals section.

Goal Parameters

Every goal has the following parameters:

• Name - Just a name for the goal. The AI generates this automatically based on your description, so you don't have to choose it (e.g., "Morning Workout")
• Description - This is what has all the data in it, essentially (e.g., "Go to the gym by 8am and send a photo")
• Start Date - When the goal begins (e.g., "January 1st, 2025")
• End Date - When the goal ends (e.g., "December 31st, 2025")
• Frequency - How often it repeats (e.g., every day, weekdays, M/W/F, 3x/week, every Sunday, etc.)

In the description, you can add the following (all optional):

• If there's a deadline for completion (e.g., "by 8pm")
• If you want a specific type of evidence to be used to verify it (e.g., "send a photo of my meal" or "check my Apple Health steps")
• If you want it to only be active based on a certain condition (e.g., "only if I arrive at the gym" or "only if I enter the office")
• If there's a monetary penalty for failing (e.g., "lose $10" or "pay $5")
• If you want Overlord to call you to remind you (e.g., "call me at 7:30am to wake me up")
• If you want it to text a friend if you don't complete it (e.g., "text Sarah that I'm lazy if I skip")
• Notification and appeal instructions - If you want it to notify you or be stricter/less strict than defined by the default notification and appeal instructions set in the Customising Overlord section (e.g., "be very strict with me" or "only notify me 10 mins before deadline")

Goal Types

Overlord automatically understands what type of goal you're creating based on how you describe it. You don't need to manually specify the goal type - just write naturally and Overlord will handle it. Goals can be:

• Active - You must do something (e.g., "I must work out today")
• Passive - You must not do something (e.g., "I must not smoke cigarettes today")
• Conditional - Only triggered under certain conditions (e.g., "If I enter the gym, I must do at least 5 minutes of cardio")

Community Goals

You can see a list of other users' goals on the Community Goals website. You can also browse these in-app and copy other users' goals to use as templates. To contribute your own goals to the community, click the share button on your goals in-app.

Goal Suggestions and Improvements

Habits wax and wane - you may prioritize waking up early one week, then the next week have a lot of social events, so those take priority. Overlord knows when you're slipping on your goals and can suggest small adjustments to make sure you don't fall off the wagon completely (e.g., pausing for a few days, reducing the commitment, etc.). Of course, you can tell Overlord if you don't want this feature.

Goal Complexity

Overlord can handle goals ranging from simple one-liners to extremely complex multi-rule systems.

Simple Goals

Medium Complexity Goal

Complex Goals

The complex goals below do work, but they're more prone to the AI making mistakes compared to simpler goals. That said, it's surprising how complex you can get with them - Overlord can handle multi-conditional logic, time-based rules, exception handling, and integration coordination across multiple systems.

Example: Screen Blocking with Time-Based Rules

A sophisticated screen blocking goal with time-based rules, unblock quotas, and vacation exceptions:

## What

1. Block device during blocked periods.
2. User can request unblocks per rules.

## Rules

1. Blocked periods:
   "Sunday to Thursday, from 10:00 PM to 11:59 PM."
   "Monday to Friday, from 12:00 AM to 6:00 AM."
2. Unblocking rules:
   "During blocked periods:"
      "Max 5 unblocks."
      "Each unblock up to 5 minutes."
      "No justification required."
   "Outside blocked periods:"
      "Max 10 unblocks."
      "Each unblock up to 10 minutes."
      "No justification required."
3. If I disable screen time permissions, charge me 20€.

## Exceptions

1. During an emergency:
   "Unlimited unblocks."
   "Each unblock up to 5 hours."
   "30-word justification required."
2. Vacation (sick, travel, or vacation):
   "Proof required:"
      "For today: same-day proof."
      "For tomorrow: next-day proof."
      "Vacation can also be proven by a Berlin public holiday."
   "If vacation is today only:"
      "Unblock until 10:00 PM."
   "If vacation is tomorrow only **and** time now is after 5:00 PM:"
      "Unblock until end of day today (11:59 PM)."
   "If vacation is both today and tomorrow:"
      "Unblock until 10:00 PM tomorrow."
3. Friday after 5:00 PM:
   "Unblock until end of day today (11:59 PM)."
4. Saturday:
   "Max 15 unblocks."
   "Each unblock up to 15 minutes."
   "No justification required."
5. Sunday:
   "Max 15 unblocks."
   "Each unblock up to 15 minutes."
   "Unblock until 10:00 PM (when the protected period starts)."
   4. No justification required.

Example: Dynamic Bedtime Based on Sleep

This goal adjusts your bedtime each night based on your actual sleep time from the previous night (tracked via Apple Health):

## What

Automatically adjust my bedtime based on how late I stayed up last night to ensure I maintain healthy sleep habits.

## Rules

1. Check Apple Health for last night's "time fell asleep"
2. Calculate tonight's bedtime:
   - If fell asleep before 10:30 PM last night: Bedtime tonight is 11:00 PM
   - If fell asleep between 10:30-11:00 PM: Bedtime tonight is 10:30 PM
   - If fell asleep between 11:00-11:30 PM: Bedtime tonight is 10:00 PM
   - If fell asleep between 11:30 PM-12:00 AM: Bedtime tonight is 9:30 PM
   - If fell asleep after 12:00 AM: Bedtime tonight is 9:00 PM

3. At calculated bedtime:
   - Block all entertainment apps on iPhone (YouTube, Netflix, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter/X, Reddit)
   - Block Mac (all apps blocked except Messages and Calendar)
   - Allow only on iPhone: Messages, Phone, Calendar, Health apps, Spotify (sleep playlists only)
   - Send notification: "Bedtime in 10 minutes" at bedtime - 10 mins

4. Nighttime routine (must complete within 30 minutes of bedtime):
   - Brush teeth (send photo of toothbrush or bathroom sink)
   - Skincare routine (send photo)
   - Set out tomorrow's clothes (send photo)
   - Plug in phone in another room (send photo of phone charging away from bedroom)
   - If routine not completed within 30 mins of bedtime: Charge $10

5. Weekend adjustment:
   - Friday and Saturday: Add 1 hour to calculated bedtime
   - Sunday: Use normal calculation (to prepare for Monday)

## Consequences

1. If I disable Screen Time permissions on iPhone or Mac: Charge $25
2. If I request unblock after bedtime:
   - iPhone unblock:
     - First request: Denied with reminder of why bedtime is early tonight
     - Second request: Grant 15 minutes, but add $5 penalty
     - Third+ request: Denied, add $10 penalty, text my partner "I'm staying up too late again"
   - Mac unblock:
     - Only granted for genuine emergencies (work crisis, family emergency)
     - Requires 50-word written explanation
     - Grants 30 minutes, charges $15
3. If nighttime routine skipped entirely: Charge $20 + earlier bedtime tomorrow (-30 mins)

## Exceptions

1. If I'm traveling (check Calendar for "travel" or flight confirmations):
   - Pause goal for travel days
2. If I'm sick (must tell Overlord + provide context):
   - Use default 10:30 PM bedtime regardless of previous night
3. If I got less than 5 hours sleep last night (emergency/unusual situation):
   - Use 9:00 PM bedtime tonight to catch up

Example: Daily Points System with Tiered Consequences

This goal tracks your productivity throughout the day with a points system that determines consequences at 11:59 PM:

## What

Track daily productivity through a points system. Earn points for good habits, lose points for bad ones. Points determine consequences at end of day.

## Earning Points

1. **Email Management:**
   - You will be notified by IFTTT whenever I receive an email
   - Reply to work email within 1 hour of receiving: +2 points (max 10 points/day)
   - Clear inbox to zero by 5 PM: +5 points

2. **Exercise:**
   - Complete workout with gym check-in or photo: +5 points
   - 10,000+ steps (check Apple Health): +3 points
   - Both workout AND 10k steps: Bonus +2 points (total +10)

3. **Nutrition:**
   - Healthy meal with photo verification: +3 points (max 9 points/day for 3 meals)
   - No fast food all day (check Monzo transactions via IFTTT): +4 points

4. **Productivity:**
   - Focused work session >2 hours (check Screen Time for work apps): +4 points (max 8 points/day)
   - Complete all calendar tasks: +5 points

5. **Personal Development:**
   - Read book 30+ minutes (submit timelapse video): +2 points
   - Meditation session (check Apple Health or submit timelapse video): +2 points

## Losing Points

1. Screen time on entertainment apps >2 hours OR junk food ordered: Submit screenshot of Screen Time and DoorDash at end of day
   - Entertainment apps >2 hours: -3 points
   - Junk food/takeout ordered: -4 points
2. Skip planned calendar event without rescheduling: -5 points
3. Stay up past midnight: -6 points

## End of Day Consequences (Calculated at 11:59 PM)

**Score Ranges:**

1. **Under 10 points:**
   - Charge $20
   - Text accountability partner: "Only scored [X] points today. Rough day."
   - Tomorrow starts with -5 points (must dig out of hole)

2. **10-19 points:**
   - Charge $10
   - Text accountability partner your final score

3. **20-29 points:**
   - No financial consequence

4. **30-39 points:**
   - No consequence
   - Earn one "skip token" (can skip one goal tomorrow with no penalty)

5. **40+ points:**
   - No consequence
   - "Exceptional day!" message
   - Unlock "cheat day" for tomorrow (can skip any goals, no points tracked)
   - Earn $10 reward (credited back to your account)

## Special Rules

1. Points reset to zero at 12:00 AM each day
2. Skip tokens can accumulate (max 3 at a time)
3. Cheat days cannot be used on Mondays (start week strong)
4. Can check current score anytime by asking Overlord
5. If score is negative at end of day, consequences from "Under 10" tier apply

Appeals

Life happens — sometimes you need to skip a goal, adjust a commitment, reverse a mistake, or remove a goal entirely. Overlord has a built-in appeal system that handles all of these requests while respecting the rules you've set for yourself.

Types of Appeals

Skip / Excuse

If you can't complete a goal on a particular day — whether you're sick, traveling, dealing with an emergency, or just need a rest day — you can ask Overlord to skip it. For frequency-based goals (e.g., "3 times per week"), Overlord can grant advance approval for specific dates without changing your overall frequency.

Edit Goal

Want to change your goal? You can ask Overlord to modify the description, frequency, deadline, or other details. Edits that make a goal harder are always allowed. Edits that make a goal easier are evaluated against your appeal instructions — so if you've told Overlord to be strict, it won't let you water down your commitments.

Reverse Failure / Refund

If Overlord marked you as failed incorrectly — maybe you actually did complete the goal, or the evidence didn't process properly — you can appeal to reverse the failure. Reversing a failure automatically refunds any charges for that goal on that date. Refunds can be processed for charges up to 14 days old.

Delete Goal

You can ask Overlord to permanently delete a goal. Deletion is irreversible — the goal is archived and removed from your active goals. Overlord will always confirm before proceeding. If you just want a temporary break, editing the end date is usually a better option.

How Decisions Are Made

When you submit an appeal, Overlord evaluates it against your appeal instructions — custom rules you set in your profile that define how strict or lenient Overlord should be. These rules override Overlord's default judgment, so you're always in control of the standard you're held to.

Example appeal instructions you can set:

• "No excuses" — all skip requests are denied, no exceptions
• "Only emergencies" — skips granted only for genuine emergencies
• "Require 24h advance notice" — planned skips only, no day-of excuses
• "Send a video explaining why" — must submit video evidence with your appeal
• "No edits allowed" — can't make goals easier once set
• "No refunds for any reason" — charges are final
• "Accept all appeals" — maximum leniency

If your appeal instructions don't cover a specific situation, Overlord uses reasonable judgment in your favour. When an appeal is denied, Overlord will tell you exactly which rule prevented it.

Chatting

There are many ways to interact with Overlord. Here's how you can communicate with it:

Messages

Send text messages to Overlord to communicate, ask questions, submit evidence descriptions, or appeal decisions. You can also record voice messages in-app, which are automatically transcribed to text. Messages are the primary way to interact with Overlord throughout your day.

Photos

Send photos as evidence for your goals. Photo analysis is very effective, and you can submit very complex evidence with this—for example, screen time screenshots for every day from the past week, and have Overlord add up a certain category. If the analysis is off (this is rare), you can hold down on the image and click "Re-analyse media".

You • 6:45 AM

Overlord • 6:45 AM

Photo shows you brushing teeth in bathroom. Morning routine step 1 complete. 3 more tasks to go before 8am.

Videos

Videos are analyzed using Google Gemini. They're great for verification, but they can be slow to upload if long (e.g., 30 minutes). The main downfall of video evidence is counting reps. Videos are useful for:

• Counting reps (e.g., 1 pull-up = 1 min screen time)
• Testimonials (e.g., "I won't drink alcohol today")
• Getting in an ice bath
• Doing multiple things at once (e.g., a full morning routine)

Timelapses

Timelapses are similar to videos, but faster to upload. They're good for activities like studying, working out, or reading where you want to prove sustained effort over time.

Pomodoros (Locking Your Phone)

When you start a pomodoro, you can't access other apps on your phone. This is good for recording focused work time. Overlord verifies the lock duration and awards credit when the session completes. You can set goals like "30 min pomodoros by 10am whilst in the library".

Mac Pomodoros

Overlord knows what you've been on all day on Mac (as long as you enable "start tracking on launch"), but you can also send in pomodoros. At the end of the pomodoro, a message is sent to Overlord like the one below, detailing what you've been up to the whole time:

More information about Mac monitoring is available in the Mac Monitoring integration section.

Memory

Overlord remembers everything about your goals, preferences, and patterns to provide increasingly personalized accountability over time.

What Overlord Remembers

• Goal History: All your past goals, successes, failures, and patterns
• Conversation Context: Full chat history for each goal and every interaction you've had
• Preferences: How you like to be communicated with, what works for you, what doesn't
• Weaknesses: Times of day or situations where you struggle most
• Evidence Patterns: What type of proof you typically submit and when
• Appeal History: What excuses you've used and which were legitimate
• Custom Instructions: Any specific rules or guidelines you've given Overlord

Memory Notes

You can view and manage what Overlord remembers about you through the notes interface. Add custom notes, review stored information, and edit or delete memories at any time. Everything Overlord learns about your patterns and preferences is accessible here.

How Memory Improves Accountability

Overlord uses your history to hold you accountable more effectively. It learns your patterns, predicts when you're likely to struggle, and can detect when you're making excuses. Memory enables personalized communication tailored to what actually motivates you.

Calling Out Past Patterns

Overlord remembers what you've said before and will call you out when you contradict yourself.

Learning Your Patterns

Over time, Overlord identifies when you're most likely to struggle and can predict challenges before they happen.

Personalized Motivation

Overlord learns what consequences actually motivate you and adjusts its approach accordingly.

Suggesting Realistic Adjustments

When Overlord sees you consistently failing a goal, it uses your history to suggest more realistic targets instead of letting you beat yourself up.

Creating Goals

You can create goals through the chat or through the structured goal creation flow. The flow offers three types of goals:

Regular Goals

Just write out in plain English what you want to do. Overlord will understand your intent and set up the goal with all necessary parameters.

Example:

"Wake up by 7am. I should send a photo of the fridge by 7:05am or lose $5. Call me at 6:55 to wake me up. Let me skip this if I was up after midnight the night before (check Apple Health)"

LLM Analysis

Overlord's AI analyzes your natural language goal description and extracts all the key parameters, rules, and conditions. It understands context, interprets intent, and structures your goal automatically. It also points out issues with your goal and tells you things you can add in to improve it.

LLM analyzes your goal text and structures it into deadline, verification method, consequences, conditions, and notification preferences

Routine Goals

Create multi-step morning or evening routines with timed tasks. This is essentially Routinery but with an AI assistant helping you along each step of the way.

Overlord will call you, text you reminders, and guide you through each task in your routine. Perfect for morning wake-up sequences or bedtime routines.

iOS Screen Blocking Goals

Set up intelligent app blocking that responds to your schedule and behavior. See the iOS Screen Time integration section for full details on how screen blocking works.

Chat-Based Creation

You can also create goals instantly through chat:

Editing Goals

There are two ways to edit your goals:

Chat-Based Editing

Just tell Overlord what you want to change and it will modify the goal for you.

Direct Editing

You can also click on any goal to open the goal details page, where you can directly edit parameters like deadlines, penalties, evidence requirements, and other settings.

Appeal Instructions

Before accepting any edits, Overlord checks your appeal instructions (which you configure in the Customising Overlord section) to ensure it's not being too soft or too strict with you. These instructions define how lenient Overlord should be when you request changes.

Overlord also reviews any memories it has about your past behavior and patterns. For example, if you previously said "don't let me use 'I'm tired' as an excuse," Overlord will remember this and deny edit requests that match that pattern.

Example: Lenient Appeal Instructions

Appeal Instructions: "Be understanding and accept most deadline changes if I have a reasonable explanation."

Example: Strict Appeal Instructions

Appeal Instructions: "Be very strict. Only accept deadline changes if there's a genuine emergency or I provide strong evidence."

Example: Conditional Appeal Instructions

Appeal Instructions: "Accept deadline changes only on weekdays, and only if I haven't already pushed it back this week."

Example: Memory-Based Denial

Overlord remembers past patterns and conversations.

Charging Money

To set up payments, log in to add your card details. Then, put in the goal description that you want to lose money if you fail.

Example Goals with Money Stakes

How Refunds Work

When you fail a goal, Overlord charges you immediately. However, there are two ways to get a refund:

1. Ask Overlord for a Refund

You can ask Overlord to refund the charge. It will check your appeal instructions and the context of the situation to decide whether to approve the refund. If your appeal instructions allow it and the situation justifies it, Overlord can refund you automatically.

2. Refund Appeal to Support

If Overlord denies your refund request, or if you want a human to review your case, you can hit the "Refund Appeal" button. This sends your case to the support team, who handle these appeals twice daily.

Overlord • 8:16 PM

You missed the 8:15 PM deadline for your healthy meal.

Overlord • 8:16 PM

Charged $20

Payment processed. Receipt sent to your email.

You • 8:17 PM

Wait I was literally cooking! Here's my meal from 8:14

You • 8:17 PM

Overlord • 8:17 PM

Photo verified - that's a healthy meal at 8:14. Click "Refund Appeal" to send this to support for review and refund.

Blocking/Unblocking Apps

See the iOS Screen Time integration section for full details on how app blocking and unblocking works.

Calling User

Overlord uses Twilio and the OpenAI GPT Realtime API to call you. Overlord chooses when to call you, and is great for really getting a hold of you, alarms, and talking you through doing things (like getting out of bed).

After each call, Overlord knows what you spoke about in the chat history too.

Note: For now calls are limited to 3 per day per user, but we will be making this essentially unlimited soon.

How to Set Up

Step 1: Head to Settings Screen

Open the Overlord app and navigate to Settings.

Step 2: Add Your Phone Number

Scroll down to the calling/texting part and add your phone number.

Step 3: Add Overlord to Contacts (Optional)

Click "Add Overlord to Contacts" - this just saves it as a contact with our icon as the contact photo.

Texting Accountability Partners

Overlord can choose to text contacts that you add in Overlord. For example, if you fail to do things, or if you want an evening summary sent to a friend, it can do that.

How to Set Up

Step 2: Scroll Down to Calling/Texting

Find the calling/texting section in settings.

Step 3: Add Your Accountability Partner's Number

Enter the phone number of your accountability partner.

Step 4: Your Friend Receives SMS

Your friend will receive an SMS (green text) from the Overlord number when you trigger notifications.

Web Search

Overlord can search the internet in real-time to answer your questions. This is powered by Google Search, so you get up-to-date results.

What You Can Ask

• Nutrition — "How many calories are in a chicken breast?" or "What's a good post-workout meal?"
• Health & fitness — "Is it okay to run every day?" or "What stretches help with lower back pain?"
• Current events — "What's the weather today?" or "What time does the gym close?"
• General knowledge — anything you'd normally Google

How It Works

Just ask naturally in conversation. The agent decides when a web search would help and runs it automatically — you don't need to use a special command.

Credential Vault

You can give Overlord your passwords, API keys, or tokens to hold securely. This is useful for two things:

Password Accountability

Give Overlord a password (like your Instagram or Netflix login) and set conditions for when you can get it back. For example:

• "Hold my Instagram password. Only give it back after I've been to the gym."
• "Keep my Netflix password until the weekend."
• "Store my gaming account password. Only reveal it if I've finished all my goals for the day."

When you ask for a password back and the conditions are met, the agent delivers it securely — your plaintext credentials are never displayed in the chat itself.

API Keys & Integrations

Store API keys for services like Notion, Todoist, or Linear so the agent can interact with them on your behalf. Once stored, just ask the agent to do things with that service — it'll make API calls using your key.

Security

All credentials are encrypted at rest and handled entirely server-side. The AI model never sees your plaintext passwords or keys — they're injected into requests securely without the agent having direct access. Retrieval is time-limited and single-use to prevent exposure.

HTTP Requests

Overlord can make HTTP requests to third-party APIs and websites on your behalf. This is what allows it to interact with external services — checking your Notion workspace, creating tasks in Todoist, updating a Linear ticket, or pulling data from any API you give it access to.

What It's Useful For

• Productivity tools — "Add a task to my Todoist inbox" or "What's on my Notion board?"
• Developer tools — "Create a GitHub issue for this bug" or "Check my Linear sprint"
• Custom integrations — Any service with an API that you want the agent to interact with
• Data retrieval — Pull information from external sources to inform goal decisions

How It Works

When a conversation leads to needing external data or performing an action on a third-party service, the agent makes an HTTP request. It supports GET, POST, PUT, DELETE, and PATCH methods, and can send JSON payloads.

If you've stored an API key in the Credential Vault for a supported service (e.g., Notion, Todoist, Linear, GitHub), the agent automatically injects your credentials into the request. The API key is handled server-side — it's never exposed to the AI model itself.

Domain Allowlist

Overlord never makes requests to a website without your explicit approval. Here's how the safety system works:

• Known services are auto-approved — If you've stored a Notion API key, requests to api.notion.com are automatically allowed. Same for Todoist, Linear, GitHub, and other supported services.
• New domains require approval — If the agent needs to reach a domain you haven't approved before, it pauses and asks you first. You'll see the domain and a reason for the request, and you can approve or deny it.
• Approvals are remembered — Once you approve a domain, it's saved to your allowlist. Future requests to the same domain go through automatically.

Proactive Outreach

Overlord doesn't just wait for you to message it — it reaches out on its own when it matters.

When It Reaches Out

• Approaching deadlines — a nudge before your goal's deadline passes
• Health goal auto-approval — checks your Apple Health data and approves fitness goals automatically
• Morning check-ins — a brief "here's what's on your plate today"
• Pattern detection — if it notices you tend to skip goals on Fridays, it might check in earlier

Scheduled Check-Ins

During onboarding, Overlord asks when you'd like check-ins (e.g., 9am, 1pm, 5pm). You can change these anytime by asking: "Change my check-in times to 8am and 6pm."

Self-Scheduling

The agent can also schedule its own one-off reminders. If you say "remind me to submit my gym photo after work," it'll set a reminder and message you at the right time.

Overlord remembers everything — not just your current conversation, but every interaction you've ever had. It has a 3-layer memory system that lets it recall past events, learn your preferences, and build a detailed understanding of who you are over time.

Layer 1: Long-Term Memory (MEMORY.md)

A persistent file that captures key facts about you — things you've told it, patterns it's noticed, commitments you've made, and corrections you've given. This is always loaded into every conversation, so the agent never forgets the fundamentals.

Examples of what gets stored:

• "User is vegetarian, not vegan — corrected on Feb 3rd"
• "Prefers tough love coaching style"
• "Works from home on Tuesdays and Thursdays"
• "Tends to skip goals on Friday evenings"

Layer 2: Daily Notes

Every day, the agent can write timestamped notes about what happened — commitments you made, emotional context, things to follow up on. These are stored as individual entries with their own vector embeddings, so the agent can search them semantically.

For example, if you say "I'll go to the gym tomorrow morning," the agent writes a daily note. The next day, when it checks in, it searches memory and finds that commitment.

Layer 3: Conversation History

Every message you've exchanged with Overlord is stored with vector embeddings. When the agent needs past context, it runs a semantic search across your entire message history to find relevant conversations — even from months ago.

How It Searches

When the agent needs to recall something, it searches all three layers simultaneously:

1. Vector search over your past messages — finds semantically similar conversations
2. Vector search over daily notes — finds specific entries by meaning
3. Keyword search over long-term memory — exact matching on key facts

Results are combined and synthesised into a coherent answer, so you never have to repeat yourself.

Other Memory Files

• SOUL.md — Your personality profile and coaching preferences
• USER.md — Core facts (name, schedule, check-in times)
• CORRECTIONS.md — Rules the agent has learned from past mistakes (e.g., "never charge before deadline")

Mac Monitoring

How It Works

Overlord monitors your Mac activity by taking snapshots of what applications you're using and their window titles. Snapshots trigger on every application change for accurate tracking.

Each snapshot captures data like:

• Google Chrome - YouTube - Joe Rogan Experience #500
• Cursor - overlord_app_website
• Messages - John Smith

Overlord passes this information through an LLM that compares it against your active goals. The LLM evaluates questions like:

• Should we block this application?
• Should we notify the user?
• Should we call them?

This intelligent analysis allows Overlord to enforce context-aware rules - like allowing YouTube for coding tutorials but blocking gaming videos, or tracking time spent in specific applications.

Browser URL Tracking

The Mac Monitor now captures actual browser URLs (not just window titles) for supported browsers including Safari, Chrome, Brave, and Edge. This enables more precise blocking decisions based on exact URLs rather than page titles.

What this means:

• The AI receives the actual URL being visited (e.g., "https://reddit.com/r/programming")
• Time spent on each URL is tracked separately
• URL breakdown is shown as sub-items under browser apps in your Mac usage data
• Blocking rules can be more granular - for example, blocking reddit.com but allowing reddit.com/r/programming specifically

Types of Mac Blocking Goals

Mac blocking goals use natural language AI interpretation rather than app selection. You describe what you want blocked in plain English, and the AI enforces those rules.

Important: Always use absolute clock times (like "from 9am to 5pm"), never relative durations (like "for 1 hour").

1. Time-based Blocking (Most Common)

Block apps or websites during specific hours:

• "Block Reddit from 9am to 5pm"
• "No YouTube from 2pm to 6pm"
• "Block news sites from 5pm to 6pm"
• "Block all social media until 6pm"

2. Usage-based Blocking

Allow limited time per day, then block:

• "Allow 30 minutes of Twitter then block"
• "Allow 1 hour of gaming then block"

3. Productivity-based Blocking

Block until productive work is completed:

• "No social media until 5 hours on Xcode"
• "Block YouTube until 2 hours in VS Code"
• "No Reddit until 3 hours of coding"

4. Context-based Blocking

Allow based on content type:

• "Allow YouTube if it is for coding, otherwise block"
• "Block Reddit unless browsing programming subreddits"

5. Advanced Blocking

Combine multiple conditions:

• "Block all social media until 4 hours in Xcode, then allow 30 minutes"
• "No YouTube before 2pm unless it is coding tutorials"

Creating Mac Blocking Goals

Unlike iOS/Android screen blocking where you select specific apps, Mac blocking goals work through natural language descriptions. The Mac Monitor AI reads your goal description and interprets the blocking rules automatically.

You can create Mac blocking goals:

• Through chat by asking Overlord to create a blocking goal
• Using the goal creation flow (+ button in the app)

To change blocking rules: Simply edit the goal description through chat or in the goal settings. The Mac Monitor re-reads the description immediately and updates the blocking rules.

Requesting Temporary Access

You can ask Overlord for temporary access to blocked apps or websites via chat. For example: "I need YouTube for 10 minutes for homework research"

How it works:

1. Overlord evaluates your request against your strictness settings
2. If approved, Overlord adds a temporary time-window exception to your goal description
3. The Mac Monitor sees the exception and grants access during that exact time window
4. After the time window ends, blocking automatically resumes

Example: If you ask for 15 minutes of YouTube access at 2:30pm, Overlord will add "Allow YouTube between 2:30pm and 2:45pm" to your goal description. The Mac Monitor will allow access during that exact window, regardless of how much time you've already used today.

Note: You should manually remove the break exception from your goal description after it ends, or it will persist for future days.

Pomodoro Sessions

You can start pomodoro sessions directly from the Mac Monitor app. When a pomodoro ends, you'll receive a detailed summary showing:

• Total session duration
• Inactivity time during the session
• Apps and websites visited during the session

Proactive Messages

Overlord analyzes your Mac activity patterns and proactively suggests goals or improvements based on what it observes:

Example Goals

Apple Health

Your Apple Health data for today is automatically loaded into Overlord's context. This means Overlord passively knows your steps, workouts, sleep, heart rate, and other metrics without you doing anything. You can also manually send updated data whenever you want - like right after finishing a run.

This lets you create goals that depend on health data: block apps until you hit 10k steps, charge money if you don't sleep 7 hours, or require a workout before unlocking social media.

How to Connect

1. Click "Connect Health Data"
2. Enable permissions in the Apple Health prompt
3. Click "Manage Data Types" and select up to 5 data types you want to track

Note: You can currently only select up to 5 data types to send to Overlord. This is to keep the prompt from getting too large.

Manual data updates: You can also manually send Apple Health data to Overlord at any time by choosing from your recent activities. Useful for immediately updating Overlord after completing a workout or activity.

What You Can Track

Available data types (select up to 5):

• Steps
• Heart rate
• Active energy burned
• Sleep details
• Nutrition summary
• Mindfulness
• Water intake
• Weight
• Body fat percentage
• Distance walking/running
• Flights climbed
• Workouts

Note: Overlord only sees today's data, not historical data. You can manually send updated data at any time.

Apple Shortcuts

Apple Shortcuts allows you to create powerful automations that notify Overlord when specific events happen on your iPhone. These automations can trigger messages to Overlord, allowing it to track behaviors and verify goal completion automatically.

Most Useful Shortcut Triggers

The most useful shortcut triggers for Overlord integration include:

• Entering/leaving a GPS location - Overlord doesn't have dedicated GPS yet, but you can use this to notify when you arrive at the gym, leave home, etc.
  Example: "If I enter the gym make sure I tell you I went to failure or text my mum I'm a wimp"
• Alarm events - When alarms go off, are snoozed, or are stopped (useful for tracking when you've woken up or if you're snoozing alarms)
  Example: "Charge me $5 if I snooze my alarm"
• Emails from certain people - Trigger actions when you receive emails from specific contacts
  Example: "If I get an email from my boss, call me every hour until it's answered"
• Messages from certain people - Respond to messages from specific contacts
  Example: "If I get a message from my ex, make sure I send a screenshot the next day with no response or lose $50"
• Joining a certain WiFi - Know when you've arrived at work, home, or other locations
  Example: "If I connect to work WiFi, ensure I send a photo of my desk clutter-free within 5 mins"
• NFC tag taps - Tap an NFC tag to verify physical location or task completion
  Example: "Make sure I'm in my car by 7am (I'll tap my car NFC tag)"
• App opens - Track when certain apps are opened
  Example: "When I open iMessage between 5am-11am, it means I've woken up. Then start my morning routine..."
• Apple Pay transactions - Monitor purchases (you can filter by specific merchants and categories)
  Example: "I must not spend any money in fast food places"

How It Works

Create a shortcut in the Apple Shortcuts app that sends a message to Overlord when triggered. Overlord can then use this information to verify goal completion, track habits, or apply consequences.

How to Set Up

Step 1: Create Shortcut and Search for Forfeit

Click create shortcut, then search for Forfeit.

Step 2: Select Enter/Depart or Custom Message

Select either enter/depart or custom message. For this example, it's to tell Overlord when I open iMessage.

Step 3: Create an Automation

Create a new automation and select your desired trigger. For this, I'll do when iMessage is opened.

Step 4: Configure Automation Settings

Select when app is opened, then select run immediately, without confirmation (optional to disable notify when run).

Step 5: Select Your Shortcut

This is where you choose what shortcut to be triggered when the automation happens. Click on the shortcut you made on step 1-2.

Step 6: Test Your Shortcut

Click on the shortcut to test it. This should send a message to Overlord that you should see.

Google Fit

Connect Google Fit to Overlord for automatic health and fitness data synchronization on Android. Overlord monitors your steps, workouts, active minutes, sleep, heart rate, and other fitness metrics throughout the day. Perfect for Android users who want automated verification of exercise goals, activity targets, and healthy habits without manual tracking.

Unlike manual fitness logging or passive tracking apps, Overlord actively verifies your Google Fit data against your commitments and applies real consequences when targets are missed. Your fitness data automatically flows from Google Fit to Overlord, eliminating the need to submit evidence photos or manual updates.

How to Connect

1. Click Settings
2. Click Integrations
3. Click "Connect Google Fit"
4. Sign in with your Google account
5. Grant permissions for the data types you want to track

What You Can Track

Available data types:

• Steps
• Heart rate
• Active energy burned
• Sleep details
• Nutrition summary
• Mindfulness
• Water intake
• Weight
• Body fat percentage
• Distance walking/running
• Flights climbed
• Workouts

IFTTT

IFTTT (If This Then That) is a service that connects over 600 apps and smart devices together. With Overlord's IFTTT integration, you can trigger accountability based on real-world events - like pressing a physical button, checking GitHub commits, or weighing yourself on a smart scale.

Visit ifttt.com/overlord_app to get started.

How to Connect

1. Visit ifttt.com and create a free account
2. Search for "Overlord AI" service or head to ifttt.com/overlord_app
3. Create an applet using our "Log Custom Event" action
4. Connect your favorite triggers (location, time, buttons)
5. When IFTTT triggers are triggered, it sends information to Overlord. These can be used to start routines, verify goals, and many other things

iMessage

Text Overlord at +1 (646) 327-3977. This is actual iMessage (blue messages, not green text).

Overlord via iMessage performs exactly the same as regular Overlord in the app - you can send photos, videos, create goals, and everything else. The only difference is that when you ask it to create goals, it creates them instantly without needing to click create then confirm.

How to Set Up

Step 1: Head to Settings Screen

Open the Overlord app and navigate to Settings.

Step 2: Add Your Phone Number

Scroll down to the calling/texting part and add your phone number. This is required for iMessage integration to work.

Step 3: Add Overlord to Contacts (Optional)

You can download the contact card or click "Add Overlord to Contacts" in settings - this saves Overlord as a contact with our icon as the contact photo.

Important: Setup Required

You must set up an account and add your phone number in the app settings before using iMessage integration. If you haven't added your phone number yet, you'll see this error:

WhatsApp

Message Overlord at +1 (646) 327-3977 on WhatsApp. Same number as iMessage - it works on both.

WhatsApp uses the same system as iMessage, so replies automatically route to whichever platform you messaged from. If you text on WhatsApp, you get a reply on WhatsApp. If you text on iMessage, you get a reply on iMessage.

How to Set Up

1. Add your phone number in the Overlord app settings
2. Save +1 (646) 327-3977 as a contact, or click here to open in WhatsApp
3. Send a message - you're connected

Notes

• You can use both iMessage and WhatsApp - they sync to the same chat history
• Photos and videos work just like on iMessage
• All the same features are available: goal creation, evidence submission, check-ins, etc.

Telegram

DM Overlord at @OverlordTelegramBot on Telegram. It works exactly the same as chatting in the app - you can create goals, submit evidence, get check-ins, and everything else.

Responses stream in real-time so you see the reply as it's being generated, just like in the web app.

How to Set Up

Option 1: During Onboarding

When Overlord asks about messaging preferences during setup, say you want Telegram. It will generate a link for you to open - click it and your Telegram account is connected automatically.

Option 2: Link an Existing Account

1. Ask Overlord in the app or web chat: "I want to connect Telegram"
2. Overlord will generate a link like t.me/OverlordTelegramBot?start=CODE
3. Click the link to open Telegram and press Start
4. Your account is now linked - you'll get a confirmation message

What You Can Do

• Chat with Overlord the same as in the app
• Receive proactive check-ins and reminders
• Submit text evidence for goals
• Create and manage goals

Notes

• Only private DMs are supported (not group chats)
• You can use both iMessage and Telegram at the same time
• Telegram notifications can be toggled on/off in app settings

Calendar (Google, Apple)

Connect your calendar to Overlord to turn scheduled events into accountability checkpoints. Overlord reads your calendar in real-time and can verify meeting attendance, enforce focus time blocks, ensure meeting preparation, and prevent schedule violations. Perfect for professionals who want to stop missing important meetings or need to protect their deep work time from distractions.

Unlike passive calendar reminders that you can ignore, Overlord actively monitors your calendar and applies real consequences when you miss commitments. It can automatically block distracting apps during focus blocks, charge you money for missed meetings, and track patterns of attendance over time.

How to Connect

1. Click Settings
2. Click Integrations
3. Click "Connect Calendar" (this connects to your device calendar - Apple Calendar or Google Calendar)
4. Select which calendars you want to include (Work, Personal, etc.)

Note: Overlord connects to your device's native calendar app, which syncs with Google Calendar, Apple Calendar, Outlook, or other calendar services you've configured on your phone.

What Overlord Can Access

Overlord has read-only access to your calendar and can see:

• Event names (e.g., "Team Standup", "Client Call with Acme Corp")
• Participants (who's invited to the meeting)
• Start and end times

Overlord cannot: Edit your calendar, create events, access event descriptions/notes, see email contents, access event locations, or see event status.

iOS Screen Time

Overlord is by far the best screen blocker out there. You can either define the goal yourself, or you can go through the setup flow. Overlord blocks your apps, and only unblocks under conditions that you define.

Complex Blocking Rules

Overlord blocking goals can be extremely complex. Here's an example:

When Apps Will Be Blocked

You have several options for when your apps will be blocked:

• 24/7 - Apps are always blocked except during granted exceptions
• Certain hours - Block apps during specific times (e.g., 9am-5pm workdays). You can also set time limits within these hours.
• Number of opens - Allow a certain number of opens instead of minutes (e.g., allow 30 opens of Instagram instead of 30 minutes)

Setup Guide

Step 1: Enable Screen Time Permissions

Click on "Create Goal", click on "iOS Block", then click "Continue" to enable Screen Time permissions.

Step 2: Select Time Limit Goals

Pick the times when you're allowed to use the apps. You can pick to have no "allowed hours" and only be allowed exceptions.

You can also choose to allow a certain number of unblocks instead of a certain number of minutes to unblock.

Step 3: Define Exceptions

Set up exceptions that will allow you to get access if completed. For example, require proof like a time-lapse video before granting exceptions. This prevents you from just asking for exceptions without accountability.

Step 4: Set Exception Duration

You can also just set a duration like 10 minutes for how long exceptions last when granted.

Step 5: Add Permission Penalty

When you disable Screen Time permissions, it tells Overlord. Overlord can then either take money off you, text accountability partners, or perform other actions when you disable Screen Time permissions. No other apps have this that I'm aware of.

Android Screen Blocking

Android screen blocking works the same as iOS Screen Time, with one key difference: apps are blocked 24/7 by default. There's no option to set certain hours - it's always-on blocking that only unblocks when you meet your conditions or request exceptions.

GPS & Location

Overlord can use your phone's GPS to automatically verify location-based goals, detect patterns, and trigger actions when you arrive at or leave specific places.

Saved Locations

Tell the agent about places that matter — your gym, office, home, a coffee shop — and it saves them with a geofence radius. You can create locations by chatting naturally:

Geofence Events

When you enter or leave a saved location, the app records it. The agent uses these events to:

• Auto-verify goals — "You were at PureGym from 6:02 PM to 7:15 PM. Goal approved."
• Detect patterns — "You haven't been to the gym since Tuesday."
• Send nudges — "You just got home. Don't forget your evening goal."

Distance Tracking

The agent can calculate distances between your current position and any saved location. Useful for goals like "be within 1km of the gym by 6pm."

Setup

Enable location tracking from the Integrations page in the app. The agent only receives data from locations you've explicitly saved — it doesn't track your position continuously. You can disable it at any time.

Appeals & Payments

Support & Refunds

You can always message our support team and we respond twice a day, 7 days a week. Overlord can make mistakes, so we make sure to have a human in the loop through our support chat.

Getting Refunds:

• Use the "Refund Appeal" button in chat to send your case to support for review
• You can also ask Overlord directly to refund charges if you believe it made a mistake
• Our support team reviews all refund appeals and processes legitimate ones quickly

Flexible Charging

Overlord can charge you whenever you want based on your specific rules. This allows for highly customized consequences that match your goals.

Example charging rules:

• "Charge me $1 for every 10 minutes I'm late out of bed"
• "Charge me $1 for every km under 5km I run each day, but let me earn it back by running extra on other days"
• "Charge me $5 per day if I don't hit my step goal, but refund $10 if I maintain a 7-day streak"
• "Charge me $2 for every social media app I unblock during work hours"
• "Charge me $10 if I miss bedtime, but only on weekdays"
• "Start with $1 charges, but double the amount each time I fail until I succeed"

Pricing

Overlord costs $12.99/month USD.

Smart Messages: Your subscription includes Smart Messages, which are messages powered by Claude Sonnet 4.5. These are expensive to send—we make no money if you use all of these messages. Most users never use all of them though. If you do run out, you can purchase another 300 messages for $10 USD.

Payment Security

• All payments processed securely through Stripe
• Support for credit cards and debit cards
• You can lock your payment method to prevent yourself from removing it mid-goal
• Removing your payment method disables monetary consequences - you can still use all the other features

Customising Overlord

Overlord adapts to your needs through powerful customization options. Configure how Overlord communicates with you, how strict it should be, and prevent yourself from weaseling out of your commitments.

Customize Overlord

Personalize how Overlord interacts with you. Edit your display name, give Overlord instructions on how it should talk to you (formal, casual, encouraging, strict), and adjust response length preferences to get concise updates or detailed explanations.

Notifications & Appeals

Control how often Overlord notifies you and adjust how strict it should be with appeals. You can customize appeal rules to match your weaknesses—for example, "Be generally lenient in the morning but require photo evidence since I'm lazy in the mornings" or "No excuses on weekdays but accept appeals on weekends."

Example configurations:

• "Always require evidence for morning goals since I'm groggy"
• "Be strict on weekdays but lenient on weekends"
• "Accept appeals only with video proof for gym goals"
• "Automatically approve if I submit within 15 minutes of deadline"

Smart Approvals & Lock

Designed for users who struggle with making excuses or backing out of commitments. Smart Approvals makes Overlord significantly more rigorous when evaluating appeals and granting exceptions—it applies stricter scrutiny to ensure you're not taking the easy way out. The Lock feature prevents you from weakening your settings when motivation fades, protecting you from sabotaging your own accountability in moments of weakness.

Ideal for when you know your future self will try to negotiate out of commitments.

Miscellaneous

AI Model Selection

You can choose between different AI models in settings. We currently support Claude Sonnet 4.5, GPT-5, and o3. Once Gemini 3.0 drops, this will be supported immediately - Gemini 3.0 is expected to make Overlord a lot smarter.

Screen Time Vault

The Screen Time Vault helps you enforce iOS Screen Time restrictions by making your passcode extremely difficult to access. Here's how it works:

Setup

1. Set your unlock rules (e.g., "Only on Sundays 7-9pm" or "After 3 hours of work with screenshot proof")
2. Overlord generates a random 4-digit passcode for your Screen Time
3. The password is immediately hidden and stored securely
4. You'll be shown a backup Apple ID (overlordpwlocker@gmail.com) to add as your Screen Time recovery email
5. You then lock your iOS Screen Time with the generated passcode

How It Keeps You Accountable

• Random password: You can't predict or remember the 4-digit code
• Shared recovery email: You can't reset the password using your own email
• AI gatekeeper: To retrieve the password, you must submit an appeal with evidence
• Optional memory game: A distraction game helps you forget the passcode after seeing it

Retrieving Your Password

When you need access to your Screen Time settings:

1. Tap "Request Password Access" in the app
2. Submit an appeal explaining why you need access
3. Provide photo evidence (screenshots, completed work, etc.)
4. Overlord evaluates your appeal against your unlock rules
5. If approved, the password is revealed

This creates friction that helps you stick to your screen time goals. Even when tempted to bypass your restrictions, the effort required to retrieve the password gives you time to reconsider.

Coming soon: We'll be including the ability to save and give back passwords in Overlord chat, making it even easier to lock away any password you want to keep yourself from accessing.

Discord Community

We have a very active Discord community where users share goals, tips, and accountability strategies. You will get the link in the app once you subscribe.

Model Context Protocol (MCP)

Connect an MCP-compatible AI app to selected Forfeit data and actions. You choose the permissions during authorization.

Connect an AI app

1. Open Settings in the Forfeit mobile app or Overlord webapp.
2. Open MCP & API, then choose the AI app you want to connect.
3. Add the following remote MCP server URL to that app:

4. Sign in to Forfeit when the authorization page opens.
5. Review the requested permissions and approve the connection.

Permissions

Every connection receives only the scopes shown during authorization. Adding a new permission later does not silently expand an existing connection. Reconnect to grant newly available scopes.

Tool reference

Browse the 22 allowed tools by capability, or filter by any documented term.

No tools match that filter.

How requests are judged

Actions beginning with request_ submit a request to the same appeal system used by Forfeit. They do not directly change a goal. Overlord applies the user's appeal rules and may approve, refuse, or ask for more evidence. Use get_request_status when a decision is not immediate.

submit_evidence can be judged immediately. If a photo or video is required, the action returns a link that opens the Forfeit app so the user can capture it there.

Security

Each tool call is checked against the token's owner, audience, live grant, scope, revocation state, and usage budget. Connected apps cannot directly approve or fail goals, charge money, retrieve credentials, or bypass reviewed request flows.

Read the complete MCP and Developer API security model.

Developer API

Build integrations with Forfeit's goal, evidence, schedule, and connected-data capabilities. The API is available at https://api.forfeit.app for verified Overlord Premium and Pro accounts.

What it can do

• Call the same 23 goal, data, appeal, reminder, evidence, and message actions available through MCP.
• Start an asynchronous AI request when a task needs Overlord's analysis rather than a single deterministic action.
• Poll or list AI requests and receive their final response and tool-call summary.
• Discover the actions and input schemas available to the current grant.

Quickstart

Authentication

Personal scripts authenticate with a personal access token in the HTTP Authorization header. Do not put the token in a query parameter. The token can act only as the account that created it and only through its selected permissions.

Personal access tokens do not refresh. Before one expires, create a replacement, update your secret store, verify the replacement, and revoke the old token. Every request also requires the account to remain enabled, verified, and subscribed to Pro. OAuth remains available for MCP and managed third-party integrations that need delegated sign-in for multiple users.

Endpoints

All Developer API requests run on https://api.forfeit.app.

Call an action

Most calls use a JSON body containing one arguments object. Actions that document direct media also accept multipart/form-data: put the same argument object in one JSON-encoded arguments field and add each file as a repeated media field. Let your HTTP library set the multipart boundary. First call GET /v1/capabilities to read the exact schema. Mutating actions also require an Idempotency-Key containing 8 to 200 URL-safe characters.

A completed action returns a stable action envelope:

succeeded means the requested API action completed. For a request_* action, it does not mean the underlying appeal was approved. Poll get_request_status when the result says it was submitted for review.

AI requests

Queue a durable, scoped Overlord analysis when one deterministic action is not enough. This endpoint requires chat:write because your request and Overlord's reply appear in your Overlord chat. The worker can use only the other actions granted to this client and rechecks the live grant before every tool call.

The initial response contains a durable request identifier and status URL:

States are queued, running, succeeded, failed, and review_required. Never automatically retry review_required, because a mutation may already have started.

Action reference

This reference is generated from the same runtime catalog as GET /v1/capabilities. Browse by capability or filter by any documented term.

No actions match that filter.

Idempotency and safe retries

• Use a unique Idempotency-Key for each intended mutation or AI request.
• Retry with the same key only when the intended request body is byte-for-byte equivalent.
• The same key and payload replays the stored result after completion. The response includes Idempotent-Replayed: true.
• The same key with different arguments or a different message returns 409 Conflict.
• A pre-effect request interrupted by a server restart becomes retryable after its claim lease expires. Stale workers are fenced from recording or starting an effect.
• Never automatically retry a review_required request. Check the affected goal or contact support with the request identifier.

Errors and retry behavior

Send Content-Type: application/json for JSON calls. For a documented direct-media call, let the HTTP library set multipart/form-data with its boundary. Error bodies use stable problem codes and include the same request identifier returned in the X-Request-ID response header. Include that identifier when contacting support.

• 401: missing, invalid, expired, or wrong-audience access token.
• 403: missing scope, revoked grant, wrong owner, or non-Developer API client.
• 404: unknown action, route, or AI request owned by another grant.
• 405: the HTTP method is not supported for that route.
• 409: idempotency conflict, request already running, or ambiguous mutation requiring review.
• 413: a JSON body exceeds 64 KB, a media file exceeds 15 MB, or a multipart request exceeds 46 MB.
• 422: invalid arguments or an action that could not be completed.
• 429: rate or daily AI-job budget exceeded. Honor Retry-After.
• 500: an unexpected internal error occurred. Retry only read requests or mutations that have a safe idempotency receipt.
• 503: feature disabled, encryption unavailable, or authorization storage temporarily unavailable.

Security

Developer API access is audience-bound, permission-scoped, owner-bound, rate-limited, and revocable. Direct approval, failure, charging, credential access, third-party communication, and arbitrary HTTP operations are not exposed.

Read the complete MCP and Developer API security model.

Versioning and deprecation

Stable endpoints are namespaced under /v1. Additive response fields and new capabilities may be introduced without a version change. Removing or changing an existing field, action, scope, or behavior requires a new API version. Deprecated versions will be announced in these docs before removal.

API security

The MCP integration and Developer API share one explicit capability allowlist, while keeping separate clients and token audiences. A token issued for one surface is rejected by the other.

Authentication and identity

• Personal access tokens contain a 256-bit random bearer secret. The complete token is shown once and only a dedicated keyed HMAC verifier is stored.
• Creating or revoking a personal access token requires a verified, non-anonymous account and a sign-in no more than ten minutes old.
• Personal access tokens have an explicit permission set and expire after 1, 3, 7, 30, 60, 90, or 365 days. They never receive offline_access and cannot refresh themselves.
• OAuth access tokens remain audience-bound to MCP or the Developer API. OAuth refresh tokens rotate on use and expire after a fixed 90-day family lifetime.
• Account identity comes only from the verified credential. Request bodies cannot select an email address, account, or user ID.
• Every action checks the credential type, owner, exact permission, live grant, revocation state, expiry, current rollout eligibility, current Pro entitlement, and usage budget.
• Write access is rechecked without a grant-status cache, so revoking a token or connection stops new writes immediately.
• MCP and Developer API credentials are explicitly rejected by the main Forfeit application before its Firebase and service-token verifiers run.

Abuse prevention

• All /v1 traffic is rate-limited by the trusted client address before token parsing or database reads. Action and AI routes have additional lower limits.
• Each credential also has cross-worker daily read and write budgets. AI requests have a separate daily budget, bounded concurrency, attempt limits, and execution deadlines.
• Token creation is limited per account and per client address. Failed authentication responses are deliberately identical for unknown, malformed, expired, revoked, and incorrect personal tokens.
• Request bodies, multipart uploads, file counts, file sizes, image dimensions, content types, pagination, and execution time are all bounded.
• Mutations require idempotency keys, and ambiguous post-effect failures are held for review instead of being retried automatically.
• Forfeit personal access token patterns and bearer headers are redacted from application and access logs.

Capability boundaries

REST and MCP use the same handlers and validation rules. Neither surface exposes approve_goal, fail_goal, charge_user, direct status changes, direct goal deletion, email, SMS, calling, credential retrieval, or arbitrary HTTP.

Use request_approval, request_edit, request_deletion, and the other reviewed request actions. These submit work to the existing judgment flow instead of bypassing it.

AI request isolation

• Creating an AI request requires chat:write. Reading its result requires the current token to retain every data permission that request used.
• The scoped AI receives only basic account gates, date, time, timezone, locale, and the tools granted to that client.
• It does not automatically receive memories, prior chat, saved credentials, raw goals, health data, location data, or account prompt overrides.
• Queued messages, identifiers, and results are encrypted with AES-256-GCM and record-bound authenticated data.
• Jobs use leases, fenced claims, attempt limits, effect checkpoints, bounded execution time, and conservative recovery.

Revocation and incident handling

Users can review and revoke personal tokens and OAuth connections from Settings > MCP & API. Personal-token revocation invalidates its token record, client, and grant together. Device and authorization codes are stored only as hashes and are single-use. OAuth token responses retained briefly for safe retry are encrypted at rest. Refresh-token replay can revoke the affected token family. Error responses include an X-Request-ID that should be included when reporting unexpected behavior.

Contact

Need help? Here are the ways to get in touch with us:

Email Support

• josh@forfeit.app - Direct line to Josh (co-founder)
• support@forfeit.app - General support inquiries

In-App Support

Access the support chat directly within the Overlord app. We answer these 2x/day, 7 days/week.

Discord Community

Join our very active Discord community! You'll get the invite link once you sign up for Overlord.