Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. Amber Notes: EU-focused AI meeting notetaker by Dutch company Amberscript, with EU-only data hosting, multilingual transcription and an Ask Amber chat. The right pick comes down to team size, budget, and the workflows you want to automate.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist Alter when freelancers and consultants privately capturing client calls without a visible bot matters most, and Amber Notes when recording in-person meetings on mobile and reviewing ai summaries afterward matters most. Test each on your own meetings; the right choice tends to become obvious quickly.
macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required.
EU-focused AI meeting notetaker by Dutch company Amberscript, with EU-only data hosting, multilingual transcription and an Ask Amber chat.
Alter is a native macOS application that records, transcribes, and analyzes meetings directly on the user's Mac without sending a bot into the call. Instead of joining a meeting as a visible participant, Alter captures audio from the system output and microphone, so it works across Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, WhatsApp, FaceTime, Skype, Discord, and in-person conversations. Transcription runs through on-device models, with a choice of an optimized Parakeet model for major languages or Whisper for broader language coverage, and speaker identification is performed locally. Because processing happens on the device, recordings and transcripts stay on the Mac and the app can operate without an internet connection. Beyond raw transcripts, Alter generates summaries and action items, lets users chat with their meetings, and connects to tools such as Notion, Slack, Linear, Asana, and Jira. It targets solopreneurs, freelancers, consultants, and other professionals who want private, bot-free meeting capture on macOS. The product is actively developed and operating in 2025 and 2026. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Amber Notes is an AI meeting notetaker built for Europe by Amberscript, a Dutch transcription company based in the Netherlands. It is offered as a distinct meeting-focused product (at ambernotes.eu and notes.amberscript.com) with web access and mobile apps for iOS and Android. Amber Notes records, transcribes and summarizes meetings automatically across a wide range of European languages and dialects, with speaker identification that works across multiple participants. It produces intelligent summaries (including via custom prompts), extracts action items automatically, and offers an Ask Amber chat that lets users query their meeting history in natural language. The product supports both bot-based capture for virtual meetings on Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet and a mobile app for recording in-person meetings on the go, with summaries reviewable from a phone and synced to the desktop workspace. Its core privacy proposition is that all meeting data stays on EU servers and never leaves the European Union; the company states it does not use meeting content to train AI models and that the platform is ISO 27001 and ISO 9001 certified and aligned with GDPR. Amber Notes is actively operating in 2025/2026 with current mobile app listings and a live pricing page. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Alter is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Amber Notes is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Alter | Amber Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | On-device transcription using built-in Whisper and Parakeet models | Automatic recording, transcription and summarization of meetings |
| Standout feature | Bot-free capture of system audio and microphone across any meeting or call app | Speaker identification across multiple participants |
| Team usage | Automatic speaker identification performed locally | Action-item extraction and custom-prompt summaries |
| Integrations | AI summaries, action items, and chat-with-your-meeting Q&A | Ask Amber natural-language chat over meeting history |
| Languages & capture | Integrations with Notion, Slack, Linear, Asana, Jira and other tools | Bot capture for Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Google Meet plus a mobile app for in-person meetings |
| Best-fit workflow | Offline operation with recordings and transcripts stored locally | Support for a broad range of European languages and dialects |
Alter
Choose Alter if you need freelancers and consultants privately capturing client calls without a visible bot — strengths include local processing keeps recordings and transcripts on the user's own mac.
Amber Notes
Choose Amber Notes if you need capturing and summarizing meetings for european teams with strict data-residency needs — strengths include strong eu data-residency stance with meeting data kept on eu servers.
Alter
Amber Notes
It depends on your workflow. Alter is strong for freelancers and consultants privately capturing client calls without a visible bot, while Amber Notes is strong for capturing and summarizing meetings for european teams with strict data-residency needs. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Alter is a free tier with paid upgrades and Amber Notes is a free tier with paid upgrades. Check each vendor's pricing page for the latest plans and free-tier limits.
Sure. Running both makes sense when their strengths don't overlap and the budget allows.
More head-to-head comparisons involving Alter and Amber Notes.
Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. Amberscript: Audio and video to text service offering automatic and human-verified transcripts and subtitles. We compare them on cost, capture approach, and day-to-day fit so you can choose faster.
Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. AmpUp: AI sales coaching platform with a native notetaker that records and transcribes calls, then delivers prep briefs, debriefs, and practice scenarios. This comparison weighs them on pricing, features, and everyday workflow fit.
Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. Anarlog: Open-source, local-first AI meeting notepad (formerly Hyprnote) by Fastrepl that records and summarizes private meetings on your own device with no bot. Here's where each one pulls ahead on pricing, features, and the meetings it suits best.
Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. AskElephant: AI workflow platform for revenue teams that captures calls and meetings and automates CRM updates, handoffs, and coaching. This comparison weighs them on pricing, features, and everyday workflow fit.
Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. Aspect: AI interview assistant that records, transcribes, and summarizes recruiting interviews, then autofills ATS scorecards. Here's where each one pulls ahead on pricing, features, and the meetings it suits best.
Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. Attendee: Open-source, self-hostable meeting bot API that sends bots into Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams to capture recordings and transcripts. This comparison weighs them on pricing, features, and everyday workflow fit.
Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. Attention: AI conversation intelligence platform that records and transcribes sales calls, scores them against frameworks, and automates CRM updates and follow-ups. Here's where each one pulls ahead on pricing, features, and the meetings it suits best.
Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. Attio Call Intelligence: Attio's native call intelligence records, transcribes, and summarizes meetings and syncs every conversation to the Attio CRM automatically. This comparison weighs them on pricing, features, and everyday workflow fit.
Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. AudioNotes: AI note taker for voice, audio, video, and text that records meetings and memos and turns them into structured notes and summaries. The right pick comes down to team size, budget, and the workflows you want to automate.
Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. AudiosTranscribe: French-focused, bot-free meeting transcription tool with European inference, summaries, action plans, and automatic audio deletion. Here's where each one pulls ahead on pricing, features, and the meetings it suits best.
Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. Audiosum: AI transcription platform with Arabic dialect support that transcribes and summarizes meetings, lectures and videos. Which one wins depends on your platform mix, budget, and how hands-off you want notes to be.
123 Notetaker AI: Microsoft Teams marketplace app from BlueSky Apps that shows live transcription in the Teams sidebar and emails AI meeting notes afterward. Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. The right pick comes down to team size, budget, and the workflows you want to automate.