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Instapaper with Alopex DB
Instapaper is a service that saves web articles to read later, offline too. How would we make it with Alopex DB?
Updated: Oct 12, 2026
What the service does
Instapaper saves articles found on the web to read later. Saved articles sync across devices and can be read offline. Readers can highlight passages and add notes. The data is article text, highlights, notes and folders.
Where the data lives
- SQL tables: articles, folders, highlights and notes live in tables. The reading position is kept on the article row.
- Full-text search: a full-text index covers article text and highlights.
- Vectors: article embeddings in a vector column, with an HNSW index, bring up articles close to the one being read.
The app fetches the articles and computes the embeddings.
Deployment
Alopex DB is embedded in the app on the device. Articles live in one file on the device, so they can be read on the train. Sync between devices goes through an Alopex DB server.
Why Alopex DB fits
Saved articles get harder to find as they pile up. Alopex DB runs full-text search and similar-article search in the same SQL, and turns the pile into the next thing to read.
Alopex DB embeds in the device and brings up similar articles with an HNSW index. Start a read-later app with it; the quickstart is the way in.