BuildBetter: A no-bot meeting recorder (BB Recorder) that captures and processes calls locally on Mac, with optional cloud upload for team collaboration. Spokenly: Spokenly is a system-wide AI dictation app for Mac and iPhone that converts speech to text using offline Whisper and Parakeet models or bring-your-own-key cloud engines. The right pick comes down to team size, budget, and the workflows you want to automate.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist BuildBetter when product teams aggregating customer-call insights into jira, linear, or notion matters most, and Spokenly when privacy-conscious offline speech-to-text for sensitive or confidential work matters most. Try them side by side on real calls before deciding — needs vary by team.
A no-bot meeting recorder (BB Recorder) that captures and processes calls locally on Mac, with optional cloud upload for team collaboration.
Spokenly is a system-wide AI dictation app for Mac and iPhone that converts speech to text using offline Whisper and Parakeet models or bring-your-own-key cloud engines.
BuildBetter offers BB Recorder, a no-bot meeting recorder that captures meetings by recording system audio directly on the device rather than sending a bot into the call. On macOS it can run as a menu-bar (notch-style) recorder, a floating overlay, or a full-window app, and it includes smart auto-detection that begins recording when it detects a call. Recording, transcription, summarization, and even a live AI assistant for asking questions during a call can run locally using on-device models, so notes and transcripts can stay on the user's machine. Users can optionally upload recordings to BuildBetter's cloud for enhanced transcripts with speaker diarization, AI-powered summaries, and team collaboration. The broader BuildBetter platform is oriented toward product teams and customer-facing roles, helping aggregate insights across many calls and route them into tools such as Jira, Linear, and Notion. BB Recorder is available on macOS as well as iOS and Android. It is aimed at product, sales, customer success, and support teams that want privacy-conscious local capture with the option to escalate to cloud-based team features. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Spokenly is an AI dictation and speech-to-text app for Mac and iPhone (with Windows listed by the developer). You press a shortcut, speak, and your words are inserted at the cursor in any application — browsers, email, chat, notes, or IDEs. It can run entirely offline on Apple Silicon using local models such as OpenAI's Whisper and NVIDIA's Parakeet, or connect to cloud engines including OpenAI, Deepgram, Groq, Anthropic, and Google through a bring-your-own-key model. Transcription supports 100+ languages with automatic language detection and automatic punctuation, and every transcription is saved to a history. The app also offers AI text processing with custom prompts, a Local Only Mode that blocks network requests for privacy, and an MCP server so AI coding agents like Claude Code and Cursor can trigger voice input. It is built primarily for professionals and developers who want fast, private, accurate dictation rather than a passive meeting recorder. The app is developed by an independent developer, Vadim Akhmerov, and is in active development.
Best suited for
BuildBetter is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Spokenly is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | BuildBetter | Spokenly |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | No-bot recording that captures system audio locally | Offline local transcription on Apple Silicon using Whisper and NVIDIA Parakeet models |
| Standout feature | macOS recorder with menu-bar, floating overlay, and full-window modes | Bring-your-own-key cloud engines (OpenAI, Deepgram, Groq, Anthropic, Google) |
| Team usage | Smart auto-detection that starts recording when a call is detected | System-wide dictation that inserts text at the cursor in any app |
| Integrations | Local transcription, summarization, and a live AI assistant | Speech-to-text in 100+ languages with automatic detection and punctuation |
| Languages & capture | Optional cloud upload for speaker diarization and team collaboration | Local Only Mode that blocks network requests for full privacy |
| Best-fit workflow | Routes insights into tools like Jira, Linear, and Notion | MCP server integration for AI coding agents like Claude Code and Cursor |
BuildBetter
Choose BuildBetter if you need product teams aggregating customer-call insights into jira, linear, or notion — strengths include local processing keeps recordings and notes on the device by default.
Spokenly
Choose Spokenly if you need dictating emails, messages, and notes by speaking instead of typing — strengths include genuinely free unlimited on-device transcription on apple silicon, with voice staying local.
BuildBetter
Spokenly
It depends on your workflow. BuildBetter is strong for product teams aggregating customer-call insights into jira, linear, or notion, while Spokenly is strong for dictating emails, messages, and notes by speaking instead of typing. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
BuildBetter is a free tier with paid upgrades and Spokenly 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.
More head-to-head comparisons involving BuildBetter and Spokenly.
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