Nine years ago, we released the very first version of Bear into the world. It was small, quiet, and full of ideas we hoped might help people write a little more comfortably. Nine years later, here we are, still polishing the little app we are proud to build.
A fruitful year
Over the past year, Bear has had quite a busy schedule. We shipped 20 updates in total, each one making Bear a little better and smoother.
Some of those updates brought the big features many of you have been asking for: Read-Only Mode for focused reading, a completely new encryption system that now protects notes with attachments, Callouts to make important details stand out, Math formulas powered by MathJax, and a better Web Clipper that saves web content faster and more reliable now.
We believe that small touches make a big difference too, and this year we made countless improvements under the hood to keep your experience smooth and seamless.
For instance, folding now works in Read-Only Mode, so you can collapse and expand sections as you browse without risking accidental edits. We also improved how tables are pasted, keeping their layout intact when you copy from Excel or Numbers.
Every small fix and hidden tweak adds up. You might not notice each one, but you’ll feel them when you write in Bear.
Challenges
Like every year, this one had its fair share of challenges. Some were technical, from creating a unified codebase for all Bear platforms including Bear Web, to fixing subtle crashes related to Spotlight indexing. But Bear has never been just about code. It’s about how writing feels, how the app moves with you, and how every detail quietly helps you write naturally.
One of the biggest challenges this year was design. With Apple’s new Liquid Glass look, we wanted Bear to feel fresh and modern without losing the simplicity and elegance that makes it Bear. That balance wasn’t easy, but we found our middle ground: softer corners, a “boxed” style Sidebar, and refreshed icons that add a sense of depth while keeping your writing space clear and focused. We’re still refining every corner until it feels just right.
Balance has always been a challenge for us, especially this year. As Bear grows, every new feature brings new possibilities, and a touch more complexity. We don’t want to be a bloated “one-for-all” app, instead, our goal is to make Bear more capable without ever sacrificing its ease of use. For example, math formulas stay invisible to most users, yet easily accessible to those who need them through the BIU keyboard or the $$ syntax. We want Bear to feel light in your hands, simple for quick notes and strong enough to hold everything that matters.
News on Web
This year also marked a big milestone: We started Bear Web Beta. Bringing Bear to the web has been an exciting challenge, and matching the same level of polish and performance as our native apps is no small feat. We’re getting closer every week, thanks to our incredible testers who spot bugs, share ideas, and help us make the experience better with every update.
We can’t wait to bring Bear Web to everyone soon, one step closer to our dream of writing anywhere.
Happy 9th Bear-thday!
Happy 9th Bear-thday, to Bear, to those who’ve been writing with Bear for years, and to those who just started today. We still have many pages to write in Bear’s story, and we can’t wait to share them with you. From the tiniest polish to the next big idea, the caret is still blinking, and nowhere near the final full stop.
Thank you for being part of this journey. A new note has just been added. 
