Like everyone else, the majority of my PKM stack comprises note-taking tools, project management tools, and wiki tools. It works relatively well, but there’s also a lot of bouncing around between not just the PKM tools themselves, but also the external AI tools I use on top of that. This can create more friction in my workflow than is necessary, and you end up spending more time maintaining the system than actually using it.
I initially only used Claude in my browser, but getting the desktop app has been a game-changer for my productivity thanks to all of its integrations, some of which are available in the free version too. I can now instantly fetch and reference files, organize my notes and projects automatically, and get all of the generative AI benefits as a layer on top of that. Here’s how Claude has been replacing my PKM stack the more I use it…
The PKM stack I started with
It was simple, but not entirely frictionless
I had the classic setup on my PC. It starts with notes, and Windows Notepad is still my go-to for quick notes. It lets me write and save content in plain text, which is a universal language and future-proof, and the editor is very minimalist and easy to navigate. For Markdown formatting and backlinking, Obsidian is usually my go-to. I mainly prefer it for its easy commands and the local vault it updates automatically. Then there’s AFFiNE, which is the project manager in which I store some of these notes and research stacks long-term, keep track of projects, track my goals, and so on.
Overall, it’s a pretty basic setup that works offline, keeps my data local and easily accessible, and keeps the workflow streamlined for the most part. Both Obsidian and AFFiNE have AI tools, but they don’t come close to Claude, however. Since I’ve been using Claude a bit more seriously, I wanted to be able to integrate it into my daily work, and once I got the desktop app, it actually ended up replacing some of these PKM pillars in my stack.
How Claude for desktop can replace a PKM setup
All you need are a couple of extensions, and it can run your entire system
Claude is, first and foremost, an AI chatbot; think of it in the same camp as Gemini and ChatGPT. But it has evolved into a hybrid tool encompassing several domains, including agentic workflows, coding, web searching, and more. Most of the content I see around Claude is regarding its coding abilities with Claude Code. Coding is not my area, but I do like productivity and creativity optimization, and that’s exactly how I’ve been using Claude.
The web app is powerful and I keep it pinned in a browser tab for instant access, but the desktop app is much more capable. It has more direct access to your files and other apps on your PC through its desktop extensions (MCPs). These require zero technical know-how to set up, yet they can completely transform the way you interact with your notes, projects, research, and more. Even though Claude is cloud-based, it’s a great addition to my local productivity stack. Here are just some of the core PKM tasks I’ve managed to replace with Claude:
- Renaming files in batches
- Organizing files and moving them between directories
- Creating folders and structure
- Populating files with content and editing them
- Searching and retrieving content
- Automating tasks like scanning empty files and deleting them
How I use Claude as a PKM tool
It fits perfectly into my stack, and even replaced some of my go-to tools
The majority of my time in Claude is spent in the chats, so I like to lay the foundations of an organized workflow before I get started with prompting. I mainly do this through its Projects feature (which is available to free users with some limits), with a project for each major subject in my work. Claude also makes it easy to add and move chats between projects. Artifacts is another way I keep my projects organized - they keep all your chats contained in dedicated spaces, and there are a couple of useful templates too.
And then there are the desktop extensions, which you can find in the settings. I mainly rely on the Filesystem extension to keep my local files organized. All I have to do is prompt Claude to rename, create, organize, or move content in the folders I give it access to, and it takes care of it instantly without requiring me to ever touch my folders. For example, I can instruct it to create a txt file, name it “jan26”, move it into the “2026 design” folder, and add my january design notes to the file in plain text.
There are several other extensions, some of which can interact with Windows, send your emails, connect to design tools like Figma to extract design tokens, and much more. It can handle the entire productivity pipeline from ideation and creation to organization and tracking.
Claude is all I need
Although I still use some of my other productivity apps, there’s no need for me to rely on them so heavily for note-taking and project management. With just a couple of Claude extensions, it can fully manage my daily tasks with the right instructions and organize the data I give it access to. All without requiring me to leave the app.