Buzz: Popular open-source desktop app that transcribes and translates audio offline on your own computer using OpenAI's Whisper. MeetingsAI: Privacy-first AI meeting assistant that transcribes and summarizes meetings, with on-device processing that works offline. The right pick comes down to team size, budget, and the workflows you want to automate.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist Buzz when transcribing recorded meetings, interviews, podcasts, or lectures offline matters most, and MeetingsAI when capturing interviews and voice messages on a phone, including offline matters most. Test each on your own meetings; the right choice tends to become obvious quickly.
Popular open-source desktop app that transcribes and translates audio offline on your own computer using OpenAI's Whisper.
Privacy-first AI meeting assistant that transcribes and summarizes meetings, with on-device processing that works offline.
Buzz is a widely used open-source desktop application that transcribes and translates audio offline on the user's personal computer, powered by OpenAI's Whisper. It is MIT-licensed and actively maintained, with v1.4.4 released in March 2026, and it has grown a large community with roughly 19.7k GitHub stars. Buzz runs on macOS, Windows, and Linux, with installation options including Flatpak, Snap, and PyPI. It supports both importing existing audio and video files and real-time transcription from microphone input, and it can export results in formats such as TXT, SRT, and VTT for subtitling and documentation. The app includes an advanced transcript viewer with search and playback controls, a watch folder for automatically transcribing new files, and a command-line interface for automation. It offers GPU acceleration through CUDA for Nvidia cards, Apple Silicon support, and Vulkan for many other GPUs, which makes faster transcription practical even on laptops. Buzz also provides speaker identification and speech separation for noisy audio, plus a plugin system that adds capabilities like AI-generated summaries. Because all processing happens locally, recordings and transcripts remain on the user's machine rather than being uploaded to a cloud service. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
MeetingsAI is a mobile-first AI meeting assistant that records, transcribes, and summarizes meetings, interviews, calls, and voice messages, then extracts action items and to-dos from the results. Its distinguishing angle is a privacy-first design: it offers an on-device private AI mode that can run offline so audio never leaves the device, alongside an optional cloud AI mode for maximum accuracy. The app provides speaker identification, real-time translation across many languages, and a meeting chatbot that lets users query past discussions. Content can be brought in through audio and video file uploads, and recordings can be organized into folders for later reference. MeetingsAI works alongside common conferencing platforms such as Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, and Webex through recorded-meeting imports rather than as a join-the-call bot, which suits sensitive or confidential conversations. Available for iOS and Android, it targets professionals who want meeting documentation while retaining control over where their data is processed. The product is actively maintained, with current pricing tiers, app-store listings, and supporting blog content, positioning it as a niche, privacy-oriented alternative to cloud-only note-takers. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Buzz is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); MeetingsAI is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Buzz | MeetingsAI |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | Offline transcription and translation using OpenAI's Whisper | On-device private AI transcription with offline capability |
| Standout feature | Real-time transcription from microphone input | Optional cloud AI mode for higher accuracy |
| Team usage | Speaker identification and speech separation for noisy audio | AI summaries and automatic action-item extraction |
| Integrations | Exports to TXT, SRT, and VTT | Speaker identification and real-time translation across many languages |
| Languages & capture | Watch folder for automatic transcription and a command-line interface | Meeting chatbot to query past discussions |
| Best-fit workflow | GPU acceleration via CUDA, Apple Silicon, and Vulkan | Audio and video file uploads with folder-based organization |
Buzz
Choose Buzz if you need transcribing recorded meetings, interviews, podcasts, or lectures offline — strengths include fully offline so audio and transcripts stay on the user's computer.
MeetingsAI
Choose MeetingsAI if you need transcribing and summarizing meetings where data privacy is a priority — strengths include on-device, offline mode keeps sensitive audio off external servers.
Buzz
MeetingsAI
It depends on your workflow. Buzz is strong for transcribing recorded meetings, interviews, podcasts, or lectures offline, while MeetingsAI is strong for transcribing and summarizing meetings where data privacy is a priority. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Buzz is a free tier with paid upgrades and MeetingsAI 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.
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