Basil AI: On-device AI note taker for Apple devices that transcribes and summarizes meetings entirely offline, with no cloud upload. oTranscribe: A free, open-source web app that eases manual transcription of recorded interviews by integrating media playback controls beside a text editor. Here's where each one pulls ahead on pricing, features, and the meetings it suits best.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist Basil AI when transcribing confidential client meetings where data must stay on-device matters most, and oTranscribe when academic and qualitative researchers transcribing fieldwork or oral-history recordings matters most. Run both through a week of actual calls to see which suits your workflow.
On-device AI note taker for Apple devices that transcribes and summarizes meetings entirely offline, with no cloud upload.
A free, open-source web app that eases manual transcription of recorded interviews by integrating media playback controls beside a text editor.
Basil AI (Basil Private AI Note Taker) is a privacy-first AI transcription and note-taking application that processes all audio locally on Apple devices using Apple's on-device speech and machine-learning frameworks. Because recordings, transcripts, and summaries never leave the device and no cloud servers are involved, Basil is positioned for privacy-conscious professionals handling sensitive conversations, including lawyers conducting client meetings and other client-services practitioners where confidentiality matters. The app records live meetings and can also process uploaded audio and DRM-free video files, then generates transcripts with speaker diarization plus AI summaries and key takeaways. It supports a large set of languages and can work offline, including in airplane mode. Outputs can be exported to formats such as text, PDF, CSV, and JSON, and integrated with Apple's ecosystem (Apple Notes, iCloud Drive, Files). Basil is distributed on the Apple App Store by TONSOR LLC and is available as a universal app across iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Apple Vision, with recent iOS, iPadOS, macOS, and visionOS versions required. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
oTranscribe is a free, open-source (MIT license) web app, created by Elliot Bentley and maintained by the MuckRock Foundation, that takes the pain out of transcribing recorded interviews. It runs in the browser on desktop computers and places an integrated audio or video player alongside a text editor, so you can pause, rewind, and fast-forward your recording using keyboard shortcuts without taking your hands off the keys or switching between apps. It is built for journalists, researchers, oral historians, and students who type up interviews and recordings themselves. Rather than using automatic speech recognition, oTranscribe assists manual transcription: you listen and type, inserting interactive timestamps (Ctrl+J) that you can click to jump back to that moment in the media. Your transcript autosaves to the browser's local storage, and audio files never leave your computer, keeping work private. Finished transcripts can be exported to Markdown, plain text, or oTranscribe's own .otr format, or sent to Google Drive. Rich-text formatting and adjustable playback speed are supported.
Best suited for
Basil AI is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); oTranscribe is open source (open source). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Basil AI | oTranscribe |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | 100% on-device transcription with no cloud upload | Integrated audio/video player next to the transcript editor |
| Standout feature | Speaker diarization to separate participants automatically | Keyboard shortcuts to pause, rewind, fast-forward, and adjust playback speed without leaving the keyboard |
| Team usage | AI-generated summaries, minutes, and key takeaways | Clickable interactive timestamps that jump to the matching point in the media |
| Integrations | Support for recording live meetings and uploading audio/video files | Automatic saving to browser local storage with transcript history backups |
| Languages & capture | Multi-language support and offline (airplane-mode) operation | Export to Markdown, plain text, .otr format, or send to Google Drive |
| Best-fit workflow | Export to text, PDF, CSV, and JSON, plus Apple Notes/iCloud/Files | Local, private processing - audio and transcript never leave the user's computer |
Basil AI
Choose Basil AI if you need transcribing confidential client meetings where data must stay on-device — strengths include strong privacy posture since data never leaves the device.
oTranscribe
Choose oTranscribe if you need journalists typing up recorded interviews for articles — strengths include completely free and open source under the mit license.
Basil AI
oTranscribe
It depends on your workflow. Basil AI is strong for transcribing confidential client meetings where data must stay on-device, while oTranscribe is strong for journalists typing up recorded interviews for articles. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Basil AI is a free tier with paid upgrades and oTranscribe is open source. 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.
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