Buzz: Popular open-source desktop app that transcribes and translates audio offline on your own computer using OpenAI's Whisper. Remi8: AI voice-notes and meeting-recording app positioned as a personal second brain across mobile and desktop. Here's where each one pulls ahead on pricing, features, and the meetings it suits best.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist Buzz when transcribing recorded meetings, interviews, podcasts, or lectures offline matters most, and Remi8 when building a searchable personal knowledge base from voice notes matters most. Trial each on a few real meetings before you commit — the better fit usually shows fast.
Popular open-source desktop app that transcribes and translates audio offline on your own computer using OpenAI's Whisper.
AI voice-notes and meeting-recording app positioned as a personal second brain across mobile and desktop.
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
Remi8 is an AI-powered voice notes and meeting recording application, published by Silent Infotech, that positions itself as a personal second brain for capturing and organizing spoken information. Users record audio with one tap, and Remi8 transcribes the speech and then layers AI on top to produce summaries with action items, identify speakers, and automatically categorize and tag content. Beyond formal meetings, it is built to capture quick voice notes, brainstorming sessions, calls, and personal reminders, and it makes everything searchable through AI-powered search across recordings. The app emphasizes connecting and organizing captured material rather than leaving it as isolated audio files, with features like smart reminders and cloud sync across devices. Remi8 is aimed at busy professionals such as founders, consultants, sales staff, project managers, and students who want hands-free capture that turns into structured, retrievable notes. It is available on iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, and the web, and the company also offers a companion pocket hardware recorder for capturing audio away from a phone or computer. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Buzz is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Remi8 is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Buzz | Remi8 |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | Offline transcription and translation using OpenAI's Whisper | One-tap audio recording with transcription |
| Standout feature | Real-time transcription from microphone input | AI summaries with action items and speaker identification |
| Team usage | Speaker identification and speech separation for noisy audio | Automatic categorization and smart tagging of notes |
| Integrations | Exports to TXT, SRT, and VTT | AI-powered search across all recordings |
| Languages & capture | Watch folder for automatic transcription and a command-line interface | Cloud sync across devices |
| Best-fit workflow | GPU acceleration via CUDA, Apple Silicon, and Vulkan | Companion pocket hardware recorder option |
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.
Remi8
Choose Remi8 if you need founders and consultants capturing meetings and ideas on the go — strengths include captures a wide range of inputs beyond meetings, including quick voice memos and calls.
Buzz
Remi8
It depends on your workflow. Buzz is strong for transcribing recorded meetings, interviews, podcasts, or lectures offline, while Remi8 is strong for founders and consultants capturing meetings and ideas on the go. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Buzz is a free tier with paid upgrades and Remi8 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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