How to Search Obsidian Notes With AI, Privately

Keyword search works when you remember the word you used. After a few years of notes, you often remember the idea but not the word.

The short answer

Keep Obsidian's own search for exact words and tags. For searching by meaning and asking questions, point an AI tool at your vault folder: it builds embeddings of your notes and answers from the most relevant ones. Because a vault is plain Markdown files, you can do this without moving your notes or handing them to a cloud service.

What keyword search misses

Obsidian's search matches the words you type, which is fast and precise. It won't connect burnout to a note titled running on empty in March, or answer what did I decide about the side project? when the answer is spread across three daily notes.

Semantic search finds notes about the same idea in different words, and a question-answering layer on top reads the best matches and writes an answer. The difference is explained in keyword vs semantic search.

Your options

Community plugins. Several add semantic search or chat inside Obsidian. Check each one's settings carefully: some send note text to a cloud AI provider with your API key, others can use a local model.
Paste into a chatbot. Fine for one note, impractical for a vault, and it sends the text off your machine.
A separate local app that reads the vault folder, which leaves Obsidian untouched and keeps processing on your computer. MediaFind Memory works this way.

How to do it in MediaFind

Memory is free, runs on your computer, and notes don't count toward the free plan's 10 media files.

Open Memory in MediaFind and import your vault as a folder of Markdown notes.
Search in plain words; notes turn up in Find results next to your recordings, too.
Ask a question, e.g. when did I say the lease renews? The answer lists the notes it read, or says your notes don't cover it rather than guessing.
After you've written more in Obsidian, import the vault again. Anything unchanged is skipped.
Export the library, delete an item, or reset the whole library whenever you like. Your vault files are not modified.

Going further

Memory can hold your ChatGPT and Claude exports next to your notes, so one question searches what you wrote and what you worked out with an assistant; see searching your ChatGPT history. If you use Claude, Claude Code or Cursor, connecting them over MCP in Settings → Connect to AI agents lets them search the same memory; the results they ask for go to that assistant and its provider. Details on the MCP page.

Tips and limitations

Notes that are just a link or a title give the search little to work with; a sentence of context helps. Obsidian-specific syntax such as block references and plugin-generated content is read as plain text. And answers are only as current as your last import, so re-import before asking about something recent.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use AI to search my Obsidian vault without the cloud?

Yes. Use a plugin configured with a local model, or a local app like MediaFind Memory that reads the vault folder and answers with an on-device model.

Does importing into MediaFind change my Obsidian files?

No. MediaFind reads the Markdown files to build its own index. Your vault stays as it is.

Do my notes count toward the free plan limit?

No. Chats and notes in Memory don't count toward the free plan's 10 media files.

How do I keep it up to date?

Import the vault again after you've added notes. MediaFind skips notes that haven't changed.

How to search Obsidian notes with AI