CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. joinly: Open-source, self-hostable connector that lets AI agents join Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams calls to transcribe, listen, and act in real time via MCP. This comparison weighs them on pricing, features, and everyday workflow fit.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist CFAI when capturing private meeting notes and summaries without a recording bot joining the call matters most, and joinly when self-hosted, privacy-first real-time meeting transcription for regulated teams matters most. Run both through a week of actual calls to see which suits your workflow.
CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer.
Open-source, self-hostable connector that lets AI agents join Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams calls to transcribe, listen, and act in real time via MCP.
CFAI (Cognitive Flow AI) is a Windows desktop application that acts as a privacy-focused AI meeting and call note taker. Instead of sending a bot into the call, it captures both microphone and system audio at the operating-system level, so no "recording started" notification appears and the tool works across Zoom, Teams, Google Meet, Discord, and any other call. Transcription runs locally on the device using Faster Whisper, with support for many languages, and CFAI states that the audio never leaves the user's computer. From the live transcript it produces speaker-labeled notes, AI summaries, and action items, and it can build a real-time "Cognitive Map" that visualizes the conversation's topics. Summaries can be generated by Claude in the cloud, or users can keep everything offline by connecting a local LLM through Ollama, LM Studio, or Jan.ai. It is aimed at professionals, educators, recruiters, and others who want meeting notes without bots or cloud audio uploads. CFAI is distributed via the Microsoft Store with a free trial and credit-based subscription tiers.
Best suited for
joinly is an open-source middleware project (by joinly-ai) that makes meetings accessible to AI agents. It runs as a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that equips any agent with the tools to join a live video call, capture a real-time transcript, and interact by voice or chat during the meeting. Rather than being a finished notetaker app, joinly is a framework developers use to build interactive meeting agents that can listen, answer, search the web, draft documents, and post chat messages while the meeting is in progress. It works cross-platform across Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams (and browser-based calls), and is model-agnostic, supporting OpenAI, Anthropic, and local models through Ollama. Speech-to-text and text-to-speech are modular, with Whisper or Deepgram for transcription and Kokoro, ElevenLabs, or Deepgram for synthesis. The project is MIT licensed and deployed via Docker (with a separate CUDA GPU image), giving teams full data sovereignty. The MCP server exposes join/leave controls, transcript and participant access, audio control, chat messaging, and video snapshots, making it a building block for custom, privacy-first meeting automation. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
CFAI is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); joinly is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | CFAI | joinly |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | Local on-device transcription using Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the computer | MCP server that exposes meeting tools (join/leave, transcript, chat, audio control, snapshots) to AI agents |
| Standout feature | Bot-free capture of microphone and system audio at the OS level (no 'recording started' notice) | Real-time transcription with timestamps and speaker information, subscribable for live updates |
| Team usage | Speaker diarization with automatic speaker labels in transcripts | Cross-platform support for Google Meet, Zoom, Microsoft Teams, and browser-based calls |
| Integrations | AI summaries and action items, generated by Claude or a local LLM | Modular speech-to-text and text-to-speech backends (Whisper, Deepgram, Kokoro, ElevenLabs) |
| Languages & capture | Real-time 'Cognitive Map' that visualizes conversation topics and flow | Model-agnostic: works with OpenAI, Anthropic, and local LLMs via Ollama |
| Best-fit workflow | Works across any call platform including Zoom, Teams, Google Meet, and Discord | Docker-based self-hosting with optional CUDA GPU image |
CFAI
Choose CFAI if you need capturing private meeting notes and summaries without a recording bot joining the call — strengths include local faster whisper transcription keeps meeting audio on-device for strong privacy.
joinly
Choose joinly if you need building custom ai meeting agents that answer questions and run tasks during live calls — strengths include fully open source (mit) and self-hostable for complete data control.
CFAI
joinly
It depends on your workflow. CFAI is strong for capturing private meeting notes and summaries without a recording bot joining the call, while joinly is strong for building custom ai meeting agents that answer questions and run tasks during live calls. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
CFAI is a free tier with paid upgrades and joinly 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 CFAI and joinly.
CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. CLOVA Note: South Korean AI meeting-minutes service by Naver that records meetings, transcribes speech, separates speakers, and generates summaries and action items. Below, they line up on price, capture method, and how each fits a real meeting stack.
CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. Calendly Notetaker: An AI meeting notetaker built into the Calendly scheduling platform that records meetings and generates summaries, transcripts, and action items. Below, they line up on price, capture method, and how each fits a real meeting stack.
CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. CallBro: Bot-free AI meeting assistant that transcribes calls from system audio and produces structured notes without joining the call. Here's where each one pulls ahead on pricing, features, and the meetings it suits best.
CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. CallMiner: CallMiner is an enterprise conversation intelligence platform that transcribes and analyzes voice and digital customer interactions for sentiment, intent, and compliance. We compare them on cost, capture approach, and day-to-day fit so you can choose faster.
CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. Callabo: Korean AI meeting-notes service from Return Zero that records, transcribes, summarizes, and analyzes meetings for individuals and teams. Below, they line up on price, capture method, and how each fits a real meeting stack.
CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. Canopy Notetaker: AI meeting assistant built for accounting firms that records client calls and produces accounting-specific summaries and tasks. Which one wins depends on your platform mix, budget, and how hands-off you want notes to be.
CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. Capsho: Capsho is an AI tool that transcribes podcast, livestream, and video episodes and repurposes them into titles, show notes, blogs, social captions, images, and video clips. Which one wins depends on your platform mix, budget, and how hands-off you want notes to be.
CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. CaptureMyMeeting: AI meeting assistant that imports Zoom and Webex cloud recordings to generate notes, action items, and insights. Here's where each one pulls ahead on pricing, features, and the meetings it suits best.
CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. Carbon Voice: Carbon Voice is an asynchronous voice-messaging app that automatically transcribes voice memos and uses AI to generate summaries, action items, and documents. Below, they line up on price, capture method, and how each fits a real meeting stack.
CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. Carv: AI assistant for recruiters that records, transcribes, and takes notes during interviews and intake calls, then drafts documents and updates the ATS. Which one wins depends on your platform mix, budget, and how hands-off you want notes to be.
CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. Castmagic: AI content platform that transcribes podcasts, videos, and recorded meetings with speaker diarization and turns them into show notes, summaries, and other assets. Below, they line up on price, capture method, and how each fits a real meeting stack.
CFAI: CFAI is a Windows desktop AI note taker that transcribes meetings and calls locally on-device with Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the user's computer. Celeste AI: Brazilian Portuguese-focused AI voice and transcription platform offering on-demand transcription plus a meeting assistant and AI notes, with credit-based and subscription plans. Below, they line up on price, capture method, and how each fits a real meeting stack.