BB Recorder: A 100% local, no-bot meeting recorder for Mac and iOS that records, transcribes, and summarizes entirely on-device, built by the BuildBetter team. Whisperstream: Whisperstream is a privacy-focused Windows dictation app that turns speech into text entirely on-device, with no cloud upload. The right pick comes down to team size, budget, and the workflows you want to automate.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist BB Recorder when regulated or privacy-sensitive teams that cannot send audio to the cloud matters most, and Whisperstream when transcribing imported audio recordings privately on-device matters most. Run both through a week of actual calls to see which suits your workflow.
A 100% local, no-bot meeting recorder for Mac and iOS that records, transcribes, and summarizes entirely on-device, built by the BuildBetter team.
Whisperstream is a privacy-focused Windows dictation app that turns speech into text entirely on-device, with no cloud upload.
BB Recorder is a local-first meeting recorder built by the team behind BuildBetter, designed for people who want meeting capture without any data leaving their device. Rather than dropping a bot into a video call, BB Recorder captures the computer's system audio directly, links to the user's calendar, and turns rough conversation audio into clean transcripts and summaries. Its defining characteristic is that recording, transcription, summarization, and even live AI chat about the meeting can all run locally using on-device models, so there is no server holding the audio or transcripts. The company frames this as making a data breach architecturally impossible because there is no cloud store to compromise, and it points to SOC 2 and HIPAA considerations along with an AI transparency policy. BB Recorder is positioned as a genuinely free, unlimited option for Mac, with no trial tiers or required registration when using local models, and a companion iOS app extends capture to the iPhone. It is aimed at privacy-sensitive professionals, regulated teams, and anyone who wants automatic meeting notes without a visible bot or a cloud transcription pipeline. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Whisperstream is a downloadable Windows desktop application from Lanreal Technologies Inc. that converts speech to text using push-to-talk dictation. Transcription runs entirely locally on the user's PC via the NVIDIA Parakeet model, so audio is never uploaded to the cloud and no account is tied to the user's voice. It works across any application without add-ins or setup, inserting dictated text directly into tools such as Outlook, Gmail, Slack, VS Code, browsers, and Claude Code. Beyond live dictation, it can import and transcribe existing audio recordings, and it keeps a searchable transcript history with audio replay, encrypted on the device. Additional features include AI cleanup that tidies spoken input, a custom vocabulary for names, jargon, and acronyms, per-app custom AI prompts, support for 25 languages, global keyboard shortcuts, and full offline operation. It requires Windows 10 or 11 (64-bit) with at least 8GB RAM. It targets professionals and privacy-conscious knowledge workers who want fast, local voice input rather than typing.
Best suited for
BB Recorder is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Whisperstream is a free tier with paid upgrades (paid). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | BB Recorder | Whisperstream |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | No-bot capture of system audio directly on the device | Local, on-device speech-to-text using the NVIDIA Parakeet model (no cloud upload) |
| Standout feature | Fully on-device recording, transcription, and summarization | Push-to-talk dictation that inserts text into any application |
| Team usage | Local AI chat to ask questions about a captured meeting | Audio file import for transcribing existing recordings |
| Integrations | Calendar linking to associate recordings with scheduled meetings | Searchable, encrypted transcript history with audio replay |
| Languages & capture | Available for macOS and iOS | AI cleanup plus per-app custom AI prompts and custom vocabulary |
| Best-fit workflow | Built by the BuildBetter team with an AI transparency policy | 25-language support with full offline operation |
BB Recorder
Choose BB Recorder if you need regulated or privacy-sensitive teams that cannot send audio to the cloud — strengths include local-only processing keeps meeting audio and transcripts off external servers.
Whisperstream
Choose Whisperstream if you need dictating emails, messages, and documents faster than typing — strengths include fully local processing keeps audio private and works offline.
BB Recorder
Whisperstream
It depends on your workflow. BB Recorder is strong for regulated or privacy-sensitive teams that cannot send audio to the cloud, while Whisperstream is strong for dictating emails, messages, and documents faster than typing. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
BB Recorder is a free tier with paid upgrades and Whisperstream is a free tier with paid upgrades. Check each vendor's pricing page for the latest plans and free-tier limits.
Yes. Many teams run more than one meeting assistant when the workflows are complementary.
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