Buzz: Popular open-source desktop app that transcribes and translates audio offline on your own computer using OpenAI's Whisper. tl;dv: Video-first AI meeting recorder with searchable clips, 30+ language transcription, and EU/GDPR-friendly hosting. 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 tl;dv when eu teams needing gdpr-friendly hosting 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.
Video-first AI meeting recorder with searchable clips, 30+ language transcription, and EU/GDPR-friendly hosting.
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
tl;dv records meetings across Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams and turns them into searchable video clips and transcripts in 30+ languages, with EU/GDPR-friendly hosting. The free plan offers unlimited recording, but keeps recordings for only 3 months and caps AI notes at 10 for the account's lifetime. Native CRM (HubSpot, Salesforce) and AI coaching are on the Business plan.
Best suited for
Buzz is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); tl;dv is from $18/mo (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Buzz | tl;dv |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | Offline transcription and translation using OpenAI's Whisper | Video clips |
| Standout feature | Real-time transcription from microphone input | 30+ languages |
| Team usage | Speaker identification and speech separation for noisy audio | EU/GDPR hosting |
| Integrations | Exports to TXT, SRT, and VTT | Speaker recognition |
| Languages & capture | Watch folder for automatic transcription and a command-line interface | Video clips |
| Best-fit workflow | GPU acceleration via CUDA, Apple Silicon, and Vulkan | 30+ languages |
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.
tl;dv
Choose tl;dv if you need teams sharing video highlights — strengths include free plan with unlimited recording and 30+ language transcription.
Buzz
tl;dv
It depends on your workflow. Buzz is strong for transcribing recorded meetings, interviews, podcasts, or lectures offline, while tl;dv is strong for teams sharing video highlights. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Buzz is a free tier with paid upgrades and tl;dv is from $18/mo. 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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