PDF upload and instant text extraction
Upload PDFs and start searching the text as soon as it is extracted. The site says drag-and-drop works for books, research papers, textbooks, and articles.
Highlyt
Highlyt is a PDF highlighter and knowledge-organizing app that turns reading notes into AI-readable context. It supports semantic colors, linked ideas, search, and MCP access for Claude and ChatGPT.
Overview
Highlyt is a PDF highlighter and knowledge-organization tool that turns saved passages into structured, AI-readable context. It combines semantic color coding, linked highlights, full-text search, and an MCP server so reading notes can be reused as searchable context in Claude or ChatGPT.
The product is aimed at people who read books, papers, and textbooks and want their highlights to keep their meaning after capture. Instead of treating every highlight as plain text, Highlyt lets you define what each color means, connect related ideas across documents, and export or share that structure with AI tools when you need it.
Features
Semantic color definitions
Assign meanings to colors such as key concept, question, evidence, or methodology. The meaning is saved per document and travels with the highlight when exported or read by AI.
Knowledge graph connections
Link highlights across chapters, books, and papers to show how ideas support, contradict, expand, or question one another. The result is an interactive knowledge graph.
Full-text search across the library
Search across highlights, notes, chapters, and documents with filters for color, chapter, and document. The site presents this as a way to find a passage quickly without scrolling through libraries.
MCP access for AI tools
Connect Claude and ChatGPT through MCP so the model can read highlights, color meanings, graph edges, source metadata, and notes without manual copy-and-paste.
Structured export and library organization
Export content as JSON or Markdown, including color labels, pages, and context. The site also lists shelves for organizing documents and row-level security for data protection.
Use cases
Annotating reading with meaning
Use semantic colors to separate key concepts, questions, evidence, and methodology while reading books or papers. This helps you return to the same document later and understand why each passage mattered.
Linking ideas across sources
Connect related passages across multiple documents when one framework explains another result or paper. The knowledge graph makes those relationships visible instead of leaving them in separate files.
Finding passages quickly
Search across a large library of highlights and notes when you need a passage from weeks or months ago. Filters by color, chapter, or document help narrow the result set.
Preparing AI-ready research context
Feed Claude or ChatGPT a structured highlight set instead of a flat paste. MCP access lets the model read highlight text, color labels, graph edges, notes, and source metadata.
Reusing highlights elsewhere
Export highlights as JSON or Markdown when you want to reuse them in another workflow. The site frames this as a way to keep the structure of your notes outside the app.
Pros and Cons
Pros
- Preserves the meaning behind a highlight instead of storing only raw text.
- Supports document-specific color meanings, which is useful when different books or papers use the same colors differently.
- Links passages into a graph, making relationships between ideas easier to review later.
- Offers direct AI access through MCP, plus JSON and Markdown export for reuse elsewhere.
- Includes search and organization features for larger reading libraries.
Cons
- The pricing page shows a free trial and early adopter pricing, but the exact paid tiers and final prices are not published in the source text.
- The site does not provide clear evidence of team collaboration features or broader platform support beyond PDFs, MCP, Claude, ChatGPT, JSON, and Markdown.
- A Chrome extension is listed as coming soon, so web-page highlighting is not confirmed as an available feature yet.
FAQ
How does Highlyt work?
Highlyt is set up for reading and annotating PDFs: you upload a document, highlight passages with semantic colors, define what each color means, and then search, link, or export the result. The source text also describes a 5-minute path from PDF to knowledge graph.
What does Highlyt cost?
The site shows a 7-day free trial with no credit card required. The pricing page also mentions early adopter pricing and monthly or annual billing options, but it does not provide enough detail to confirm plan tiers or final prices.
Which AI tools does Highlyt connect to?
Highlyt is described as working with Claude and ChatGPT through MCP. The site also says highlights can be exported as JSON or Markdown, but it does not provide more detailed integration lists beyond those AI connections.
Can I customize color meanings per document?
Yes. The site says each document can have its own color definitions, so the same color can mean different things in different books or papers.
Is Highlyt built for teams?
The site emphasizes individual reading, research, and personal knowledge management. It does not provide evidence about team collaboration workflows or shared workspaces.
Quick Facts
- Category
- PDF highlighter / knowledge management
- Primary users
- Readers, students, and researchers
- AI integrations
- Claude and ChatGPT via MCP
- Output formats
- JSON and Markdown
- Site domain
- highlyt.app
- Pricing signal
- 7-day free trial; early adopter pricing mentioned
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