Someone to talk to at 3am.
Recovery is mostly the hours nobody sees. The craving at 2:40 in the morning. The day after a slip. The week where nothing feels like progress. Alder is a private AI companion for those hours. It counts your sober time, sits with you through an urge, and never makes you feel small for having one.
Works alongside meetings, medication, and professional care.
Need help right now?
You don't need this app, an account, or anything else to reach a person.
- 1-800-484-3731 — Never Use Alone, if you're going to use by yourself
- 1-800-662-4357 — SAMHSA National Helpline, free and confidential, 24/7
- findtreatment.gov — find care near you
- 1-800-GAMBLER — for gambling
These are US numbers. On an overdose call, ask for naloxone — many states have Good Samaritan laws for making that call. Alder is not an emergency service and no one at Alder sees your messages in real time, so if someone is in danger, call.
Not a streak app. A companion.
Alder counts your days. But it's really for the day that number is about to break.
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Say what you're stepping away from
Alcohol, a substance, vaping, gambling, whatever it is. Pick one or several, and each gets its own clock.
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Check in when you can, reach out when you can't
The daily check-in takes under a minute. When an urge hits, Alder is there to talk it down with you, at 3am, on a holiday, or in a parking lot.
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If it breaks, you get back up
A lapse opens a debrief: what happened, what came before it, what you'd want next time. The clock restarts, but your total across every attempt keeps counting.
Each thing you're stepping away from keeps its own quiet clock. A hard week with one doesn't erase what you've built with another.
Ready for the hard hours.
Everything is made to be used one-handed, in the dark, by someone who isn't at their best.
A clock for each thing
A separate count for each, plus a running total across every attempt. A restart never zeroes out your history.
Talk to Alder
An owl companion that's up at any hour. It listens, stays calm, and doesn't judge what you tell it.
SOS, one tap from anywhere
A ride-it-out timer for when an urge peaks, plus your people and the crisis numbers. Always reachable, and never behind a payment.
A toolbox to reach for
Short, practical things to do when waiting it out isn't enough. Urge surfing, playing the tape forward, SOBER breathing, and more.
Progress worth looking at
The urges you rode out and the milestone chips you've earned, in one quiet record.
Private by default
No account, no ads. Your recovery record lives on your phone, and the privacy policy shows exactly what goes out with each message.
Points outward, on purpose
Alder steers you toward people: the ones you listed, a helpline, or professional care.
Warm, dim, and quiet.
Every screen below was shot at 3:12 in the morning, the hour Alder was made for. No sirens, no red alarms, no cheerful shouting. It switches between light and dark with your phone.
A lapse is information, not a verdict.
Most trackers treat the day you slip as the day you failed. The number goes to zero, the confetti stops, and the app becomes something you avoid. That's the day you need it most.
- Alder never shames a lapse. It's a rule, and we test for it.
- The debrief asks useful questions. What led up to it, what it cost, what you'd want next time.
- Your total time keeps counting across every attempt. Eighty-seven days happened whether or not day eighty-eight did.
- Then it points outward. To the people you listed, or to help that isn't an app.
Each chip comes with a letter.
Nine chips, from day one to a year. Tap one you've earned and Alder writes you a short note about it.
30 days
90 days
One year- No confetti, no coins, no jackpot. Slot-machine rewards have no place in recovery.
- They arrive quietly. Share one as a card, or keep it to yourself.
What Alder is, and what it isn't.
Clear lines matter in recovery. Here are Alder's.
Alder does
- Keep your sober time, across one thing or several
- Talk with you when an urge hits, at 3am if that's when it comes
- Sit with you while a craving crests and passes, with a timer and something to do
- Give you a place to log what happened, without judgment
- Help you get back up after a lapse and keep going
- Point you toward your people, a helpline, and professional care
- Keep the crisis numbers reachable, always, for free
Alder does not
- Work as a therapist or a doctor — it's an AI companion
- Provide therapy, counseling, or clinical care of any kind
- Diagnose anything, or tell you how severe your situation is
- Give detox, tapering, or dosing guidance for any substance
- Discourage medication, meetings, or professional care
- Shame you for a lapse, predict one, or tell you that you're cured
- Stand in for the people in your life
- Have a person reading along in real time
Medication for opioid or alcohol use is recovery, whether that's buprenorphine, methadone, or naltrexone. Alder will never suggest otherwise.
Your recovery is your business.
Alder asks for nothing that identifies you.
- No account, no email. Nothing to sign up for, nothing to sign in to.
- Your record lives on your phone. The clocks, the check-ins, the debriefs. A slice of it, including your last seven check-ins, goes out with each message you send Alder.
- No ads and no third-party analytics. Not now, not later. We don't sell or share anything.
- Delete it all, anytime. Export it first if you want a copy.
FAQ
Is Alder therapy?
No. Alder is an AI companion — not a therapist or a doctor, and not a stand-in for the people who support your recovery. It keeps your sober time, sits with you through hard moments, and points you toward real support. It doesn't provide therapy, counseling, or clinical care, and using it doesn't create a professional relationship with anyone. It won't replace meetings, medication, or professional care; it works alongside them.
Am I talking to a real person?
No. Alder is an AI companion, and it tells you so. A label sits at the top of the chat screen, and Alder reminds you what it is as time goes on. Nobody reads your messages as you send them, and Alder can't call for help on your behalf, so the crisis numbers are always one tap away.
What happens if I relapse?
You get a debrief, not a lecture. Alder asks what happened, what led up to it, and what you'd want to do differently. The time you'd already put in still counts toward your total across all attempts.
Can I track more than one thing?
Yes. Alcohol, substances, vaping, gambling and more can each have their own clock, so a hard week with one doesn't wipe out what you've built with another.
Will it tell me how to detox or taper?
No. Alder gives no detox, tapering, or dosing guidance of any kind. Stopping some substances abruptly, alcohol among them, can be dangerous, and that's a conversation for a medical professional. Alder will tell you so and help you find someone.
Does it work with medication-assisted recovery?
Yes. Buprenorphine, methadone, and naltrexone are recovery. Alder will never treat medication as cheating or nudge you away from it.
Is my data private?
There's no account and no email, and your recovery record lives on your phone. We keep no database of it. There are no ads and no third-party analytics, and we don't sell or share anything. To write a reply, Alder sends your message and a slice of that record to Anthropic. Before anything is sent, you're shown exactly what goes and to whom, and asked to agree. The full detail is in the privacy policy.
What does it cost?
Alder is free to use. Alder Plus is an optional subscription in the iPhone app: US$9.99 a month or US$59.99 a year, billed by Apple. Plus lifts the daily limit on everyday conversation and answers with Alder's most capable model. Your counter, check-ins, urge log, milestones and the slip debrief are never paywalled. The SOS screen and the crisis numbers are never metered, limited, or put behind a payment.
When can I use it?
Alder isn't on the App Store yet. It's coming to iPhone first, in the US, for adults 18 and over. Send us a note and we'll email you the day it launches.
Who is Alder for?
Adults 18 and over who want private support for the hours when the people in their life can't be there. You might be in a program, in treatment, going to meetings, or doing this on your own for now.
For the hours nobody else is up.
Alder is coming to iPhone. Send us a note and we'll email you the day it launches.
Email me at launchAlder is an AI companion. It is not a therapist or a doctor, and it doesn't replace meetings, medication, professional care, or the people who support your recovery. It does not provide therapy, counseling, or clinical care, does not diagnose, and gives no detox, tapering, or dosing guidance. It is not an emergency service and is not monitored by a person. In an emergency, call 911. In the US you can also call or text 988, or reach the SAMHSA National Helpline at 1-800-662-4357. Never delay care because of something in this app. For adults 18+.