Alter: macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required. Letterly: Letterly is a multilingual AI speech-to-text app that turns dictated speech into polished notes, emails, summaries, and meeting transcripts across iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, and Web. 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 Letterly when transcribing and summarizing meetings or interviews with speaker separation matters most. Trial each on a few real meetings before you commit — the better fit usually shows fast.
macOS-native AI meeting assistant that records and transcribes calls locally with built-in Whisper and Parakeet models, no bots required.
Letterly is a multilingual AI speech-to-text app that turns dictated speech into polished notes, emails, summaries, and meeting transcripts across iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, and Web.
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
Letterly is a voice-to-text application that converts spoken words into clean, structured written text. Aimed at professionals, students, content creators, and anyone who prefers talking to typing, it lets users record speech directly in the app or dictate into other apps, then automatically transcribes the audio. Beyond raw transcription, Letterly applies AI rewriting so a single recording can become an email, a summary, a social post, a task list, a journal entry, or a meeting recap, using preset styles or custom instructions. It automatically detects and transcribes a wide range of languages and can handle mid-sentence language switching. For meetings and interviews, it offers speaker separation and can generate summaries from a recording. The app supports extended recordings, offline and screen-off dictation, quick-record widgets, and live sync across devices, including Apple Watch. It also integrates with external tools via Zapier and webhooks. Letterly states that user data is kept private and not used to train AI models. It runs on iOS, Android, Mac, Windows, and Web.
Best suited for
Alter is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Letterly is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Alter | Letterly |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | On-device transcription using built-in Whisper and Parakeet models | Automatic speech-to-text transcription of recorded or dictated audio |
| Standout feature | Bot-free capture of system audio and microphone across any meeting or call app | AI rewriting into multiple formats (emails, summaries, posts, task lists, journal entries) |
| Team usage | Automatic speaker identification performed locally | Multilingual transcription with automatic language detection and mid-sentence switching |
| Integrations | AI summaries, action items, and chat-with-your-meeting Q&A | Meeting/interview support with speaker separation and summary generation |
| Languages & capture | Integrations with Notion, Slack, Linear, Asana, Jira and other tools | Offline and screen-off recording, plus quick-record widget and Apple Watch dictation |
| Best-fit workflow | Offline operation with recordings and transcripts stored locally | Cross-device sync and integrations via Zapier and webhooks |
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.
Letterly
Choose Letterly if you need dictating and polishing emails, messages, and notes faster than typing — strengths include broad multilingual coverage with automatic language detection.
Alter
Letterly
It depends on your workflow. Alter is strong for freelancers and consultants privately capturing client calls without a visible bot, while Letterly is strong for dictating and polishing emails, messages, and notes faster than typing. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Alter is a free tier with paid upgrades and Letterly is a free tier with paid upgrades. Check each vendor's pricing page for the latest plans and free-tier limits.
Often yes: teams combine tools when one handles capture and another handles analysis.
More head-to-head comparisons involving Alter and Letterly.
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.
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