For Apple Silicon

Ambient posture detector that lives in your menu bar.

Ortho uses your camera, compatible AirPods, or both to notice sustained drift from your calibrated working position. Your posture data stays on your Mac.

Posture and movement both matter.

Posture and pain

Research hasn’t identified one sitting posture that prevents back pain. Some neck-position measurements are associated with pain, but posture alone doesn’t explain it (Swain et al., 2020; Rani et al., 2023).

Changing position

Movement breaks and changes in position reduced new episodes of neck and back pain in a trial of 193 higher-risk office workers (Waongenngarm et al., 2021).

Working comfortably

Comfortable posture varies from person to person. Choose a working position that feels comfortable, and change it throughout the day instead of holding yourself rigidly upright (Slater et al., 2019).

Why use Ortho

When you’re focused on work, changes in how you sit can go unnoticed. Ortho tracks sustained drift from your calibrated working position and brings it to your attention, so you can adjust without constantly checking yourself.

Demo

Try Ortho.

Steve acts out posture changes so you can see how Ortho responds. He appears only in this demo.

Try it swipe across the Mac, then move between Today, Activity and Settings. Preview a nudge with the controls below.

In range
Back at your neutral · 1h 41m
Last hour
09:44 Now
Today 1h 40m at the desk
In range1h 40m
Drifting0m
Reset0m
Away0m
Camera AirPods Mac sensors
In range
Back at your neutral · 1h 41m
At the desk 1h 40m · 0 away · 0 nudges
Last hour
09:44Now
Camera AirPods Mac sensors
Today Activity Sources Settings Reading Nothing you see here leaves this Mac Get Ortho
In range neck, torso, roll · 1h 41m
Last 5 hours head flexion from your neutral
09:04 10:00 Now
The whole day 09:04 → 10:44
09:04 Now

Today, still running

1h 40m at the desk · 1h 40m window

vs median —
09:04 → 10:44 head flexion from your neutral
09:04 10:00 Now
In range 1h 40m 100% Drifting 0m 0% Reset 0m 0% Away 0m Nudges —

27h 51m at the desk

Mon 7h 12m
Tue 6h 05m
Wed 8h 40m
Thu 5h 54m
Fri —
Sat —
Sun —
In range Drifting Reset Still running

Sees you — the only posture evidence

Face and upper body.
Calibrated head pitch and tilt.

Keeps them honest — context only, never a vote

Lid angle, base tilt and motion.

What every reading is measured from

Your neutral Calibrated 3 days ago, at this desk.

What Ortho keeps

Calibration Stored on this Mac
Preferences Stored separately

What Ortho never touches

Microphone No permission requested
Location No permission requested
Window content and keystrokes Never read

Ambient status

Placement

Automatic uses the notch when the display has one, and the menu bar when it does not. Closing the window never stops Ortho.

Camera tracking

Camera tracking pauses during calls. Reminders stay quiet during calls and screen sharing.

Nudges

Tell me Notification
Only after drift holds for 4 minutes
Then stay quiet for 12 minutes
Hold nudges while Focus is on

General

Start Ortho at login
Keep the icon in the Dock
Appearance
Shortcut to pause and resume ⌥⌘P
Ortho 1.0 (114) Check for updates

Try it — explore Today, Activity and Settings. Preview a nudge with the controls below.

Nudge simulator

Demo
Screen effect

Previews run independently of Steve’s posture.

Enable JavaScript to preview nudges.

Try it preview a nudge, drag either window by its title bar or move Steve around the desktop. Explore Today, Activity and Settings.

Sensors

Five signals your Mac already has.

No extra hardware. Two of them watch you: the camera and your AirPods. The other three watch the Mac, so a laptop that moved never gets read as a you that moved.

Five sensors

One at a time.

Scroll to light each one up, and see which ones are allowed to say something about you.

Privacy

Your posture data stays on your Mac.

Ortho analyzes sensor data on your Mac. Your calibration and preferences are saved locally; camera images and sensor readings aren't uploaded.

  • No photos or video saved. Camera frames are processed live, then discarded.
  • Camera optional. Compatible AirPods track head movement without using your microphone or recording audio.
  • Device context only. Mac sensors measure the laptop's movement and lid angle.
Read the Privacy Policy

WEBCAM · MEDIAPIPE

Live analysis, no saved video.

Each frame is processed on your Mac to estimate body position, then discarded.

AIRPODS · CORE MOTION

Head movement, no audio.

AirPods send head-motion readings to your Mac. Ortho never accesses the microphone.

MAC HARDWARE · SENSOR INTERFACE

Your laptop's position.

Built-in sensors provide movement and lid-angle readings to help interpret your setup.

Compatibility

A Mac. One input. That's all.

You'll need an Apple Silicon Mac running macOS 14 Sonoma or later, plus a camera or compatible AirPods or Beats.

Use just your camera for face and upper-body tracking, or headphones for head tilt only. You can use both.

Which headphones work?

AirPods 1st and 2nd gen lack motion sensors.

  • AirPods Proall generations
  • AirPods3rd gen or later
  • AirPods Max
  • Beats Fit Pro
  • Beats Studio Pro
  • Beats Solo 4
  • Powerbeats Pro 2
  • Powerbeats Fit
What about Mac sensors? Optional

Movement and lid angle, where supported, stop laptop motion being mistaken for yours. They never judge posture.

Lid angle reading needs the lid open.

  • Apple Silicon MacBooks detected automatically where supported
  • Desktop Macs no motion sensors

FAQ

Questions before you start?

Is the camera on all the time?

Continuous tracking is the default, or you can choose periodic camera checks every 5, 10, or 15 minutes. The camera indicator appears during capture; between periodic checks, Ortho cannot observe your position through the camera. Pausing Ortho stops sensing and reminders until you resume.

Can I use Ortho during video calls?

Ortho automatically pauses camera tracking during video calls and suppresses reminders during calls and screen sharing. Camera tracking resumes afterward unless you manually paused Ortho or turned the camera off.

Will it remind me every time I move?

No—temporary movement alone does not trigger a reminder; Ortho looks for sustained drift from your calibrated working position. You can adjust the reminder delay and cooldown, and reminders are held while Focus is on. Changing position throughout the day is encouraged.

How does it affect battery and CPU usage?

Camera tracking uses your Mac's camera and processing resources. You can choose periodic checks, use compatible AirPods for head-tilt tracking with the camera off, or pause sensing entirely. Resource use depends on your Mac and the tracking mode you choose.

Can I use it without a camera?

Yes—compatible AirPods or Beats can track head tilt without camera access. Headphone tracking covers head tilt only; camera tracking adds face and upper-body information.

Check compatible hardware

What does Ortho save or send?

Posture analysis works offline, and your calibration and preferences stay on your Mac. Ortho does not save photos, video, raw sensor samples, or numerical session recordings, and it does not upload posture data. AirPods provide motion readings, not microphone audio.

Read the Privacy Policy

What will it cost after beta?

The private beta is free. Pricing after beta has not been announced.

Setup and more answers

Private beta

Join the first 25 testers.

We're testing with a small group first so we can actually talk to everyone using it. Drop your email and we'll reach out when there's a spot.

Any Apple Silicon Mac on macOS 14 Sonoma or later.