Buzz: Popular open-source desktop app that transcribes and translates audio offline on your own computer using OpenAI's Whisper. Rimo Voice: Japanese AI meeting assistant by Rimo LLC that joins calls via a recording bot, transcribes in 30+ languages, and generates minutes, with data stored in Japan. Below, they line up on price, capture method, and how each fits a real meeting stack.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist Buzz when transcribing recorded meetings, interviews, podcasts, or lectures offline matters most, and Rimo Voice when multinational teams in japan needing multilingual transcription matters most. Try them side by side on real calls before deciding — needs vary by team.
Popular open-source desktop app that transcribes and translates audio offline on your own computer using OpenAI's Whisper.
Japanese AI meeting assistant by Rimo LLC that joins calls via a recording bot, transcribes in 30+ languages, and generates minutes, with data stored in Japan.
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
Rimo Voice is an AI transcription and meeting-minutes service developed by Rimo LLC, a Japan-based company, with a strong focus on accurate Japanese-language recognition. It is optimized for Japanese, handling kanji, katakana, punctuation, and specialized or company-specific terminology through dictionary registration, while also supporting more than 30 languages for multinational teams. Rimo Voice can join online meetings through a recording bot across Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, and Webex, or transcribe uploaded recordings. It provides real-time, high-precision transcription, automatically generates summaries and suggested next actions, separates statements by speaker, and removes filler words such as "um" and "uh." Teams can collaboratively edit meeting minutes in real time and manage them centrally in shared folders, and the service integrates with CRM systems such as Salesforce and Microsoft Dynamics 365. On security, meeting data is stored within Japan by default (with US or EU storage available on request), and the service holds ISO 27001 and ISO 27017 certifications, with encryption, IP restrictions, and single sign-on. Rimo Voice is best for Japanese organizations and multinational teams operating in Japan that need reliable Japanese transcription and AI-generated minutes. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Buzz is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Rimo Voice is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Buzz | Rimo Voice |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | Offline transcription and translation using OpenAI's Whisper | Recording bot for Zoom, Google Meet, Teams, and Webex |
| Standout feature | Real-time transcription from microphone input | High-precision Japanese transcription with custom dictionaries |
| Team usage | Speaker identification and speech separation for noisy audio | Support for 30+ languages |
| Integrations | Exports to TXT, SRT, and VTT | AI summaries, next actions, and filler-word removal |
| Languages & capture | Watch folder for automatic transcription and a command-line interface | Real-time collaborative editing of minutes |
| Best-fit workflow | GPU acceleration via CUDA, Apple Silicon, and Vulkan | Data residency in Japan with ISO 27001/27017 certification |
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.
Rimo Voice
Choose Rimo Voice if you need japanese companies automating meeting minutes — strengths include strong japanese-language accuracy and terminology handling.
Buzz
Rimo Voice
It depends on your workflow. Buzz is strong for transcribing recorded meetings, interviews, podcasts, or lectures offline, while Rimo Voice is strong for japanese companies automating meeting minutes. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Buzz is a free tier with paid upgrades and Rimo Voice is a free tier with paid upgrades. 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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