Basil AI: On-device AI note taker for Apple devices that transcribes and summarizes meetings entirely offline, with no cloud upload. Read.ai: Meeting summaries with engagement and sentiment analytics Below, they line up on price, capture method, and how each fits a real meeting stack.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist Basil AI when transcribing confidential client meetings where data must stay on-device matters most, and Read.ai when personal meeting coaching matters most. Trial each on a few real meetings before you commit — the better fit usually shows fast.
On-device AI note taker for Apple devices that transcribes and summarizes meetings entirely offline, with no cloud upload.
Meeting summaries with engagement and sentiment analytics
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
Read.ai generates AI summaries, transcripts, and live notes for meetings, and adds a personalized meeting coach with speaker and engagement analytics. It works across Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams, supports 20+ languages, and integrates with Slack, Salesforce, HubSpot, Notion, and Jira. The permanent free plan covers 5 meeting transcripts per month (reports kept about a year); video and audio playback are reserved for the Enterprise tier and above.
Best suited for
Basil AI is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Read.ai is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Basil AI | Read.ai |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | 100% on-device transcription with no cloud upload | Transcripts and AI summaries |
| Standout feature | Speaker diarization to separate participants automatically | Action items |
| Team usage | AI-generated summaries, minutes, and key takeaways | Meeting engagement and sentiment metrics |
| Integrations | Support for recording live meetings and uploading audio/video files | Automatic recaps |
| Languages & capture | Multi-language support and offline (airplane-mode) operation | Searchable notes |
| Best-fit workflow | Export to text, PDF, CSV, and JSON, plus Apple Notes/iCloud/Files | Transcripts and AI summaries |
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.
Read.ai
Choose Read.ai if you need team meeting notes and recaps — strengths include adds meeting analytics on top of notes.
Basil AI
Read.ai
It depends on your workflow. Basil AI is strong for transcribing confidential client meetings where data must stay on-device, while Read.ai is strong for ai summaries with meeting analytics. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Basil AI is a free tier with paid upgrades and Read.ai is from $15/mo. 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.
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