I built a lightweight Readwise alternative that turns saved highlights into AI-generated active recall questions

Hey r/SideProject,

I’ve been working on a side project called Acorny: a lightweight tool for importing, reviewing, searching, tagging, and exporting reading highlights.

The basic idea is simple:

I already had highlights scattered across different reading tools, but most of them eventually became a dead archive. I didn’t want to build yet another reader app. I wanted something focused on what happens after saving highlights:

• bring highlights from different sources into one place
• review them regularly
• search and tag them
• export or sync them to Obsidian
• make the saved knowledge easier to reuse

Acorny currently supports importing highlights from tools like Readwise, Instapaper, Cubox, Diigo, WeRead, Moon+ Reader, and a few other sources. It also has a developer API, so external tools can send highlights into Acorny.

Today I shipped a new feature: AI-generated Active Recall.

Instead of only showing a saved highlight back to you, Acorny can now generate a question and answer from the original highlight, so review becomes more active.

For example, instead of rereading a paragraph passively, you might get a question like:

Or, for a more specific highlight:

The answer is generated based on the original highlight, not from unrelated external knowledge. My current goal is not to turn every highlight into an Anki-style flashcard, but to make review sessions less passive and more useful.

Acorny is currently in public beta and free to use.

Website: https://acorny.io
Docs: https://docs.acorny.io

I’d love feedback from other builders and readers:

• Is “highlight review + AI active recall” a clear enough positioning?
• Would you use this if you already have lots of highlights saved somewhere?
• Should this stay focused on highlights, or would people expect a full reader app too?
• For Obsidian users, what export/sync format would matter most?
• Does AI-generated active recall feel useful, or does it sound like a gimmick?

Any feedback on the product, landing page, onboarding, or pricing direction would be appreciated.