Distillate

A reading workflow for researchers who use Zotero and reMarkable.

PyPI v0.1.1 Python 3.10+ MIT License
Save paper in Zotero ──> PDF on reMarkable │ Read & highlight on tablet Move to Read folder when done │ Distillate picks it up: ├── Extract highlighted text ├── Keep notes and a reading log └── Archive PDFs once read Want more? ├── AI paper summaries ├── Daily paper suggestions └── Weekly digest emails
pip install distillate && distillate --init

How it works

1 Save a paper to Zotero

Use the Zotero browser connector or mobile app. Distillate automatically picks up new papers from your library.

2 PDF syncs to your reMarkable

Distillate uploads the PDF to your tablet. Optionally removes it from Zotero to save storage (300 MB free tier).

3 Read and highlight on your tablet

Highlight the passages that matter. When you're done, move the document to the Read folder.

4 Distillate extracts your highlights

Highlighted text is pulled from the reMarkable, cleaned up, and saved as a structured markdown note grouped by page.

5 Notes and PDFs are archived locally

Your highlights, reading log, and PDFs are saved to an Obsidian vault or a plain folder on your computer.

Want more?

AI summaries Anthropic API One-liner, key learnings, and a paragraph summary for each paper you read
Paper suggestions Anthropic API Pick what to read next from your queue, based on your reading history
Weekly digest Free Resend account A summary of what you read this week, with stats and queue health
Obsidian integration Obsidian vault Wiki-links between papers, searchable database, reading stats, deep links from Zotero

What you need

ComponentNotes
Zotero accountFreeManages your paper library
reMarkable tabletRequiredWhere you read and highlight
rmapiFreeSyncs files with reMarkable Cloud
Obsidian or output folderOptionalWhere notes are saved locally
Anthropic API keyOptionalFor AI summaries and suggestions
Resend accountOptionalFor weekly digest emails
GitHub PyPI Install guide