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. ownscribe: Local-first command-line tool that records, transcribes, and summarizes meetings on macOS entirely on-device, with natural-language search across notes. The right pick comes down to team size, budget, and the workflows you want to automate.
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 ownscribe when keeping fully on-device transcripts and summaries for privacy-sensitive discussions matters most. Trial each on a few real meetings before you commit — the better fit usually shows fast.
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.
Local-first command-line tool that records, transcribes, and summarizes meetings on macOS entirely on-device, with natural-language search across notes.
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
ownscribe is a local-first meeting transcription and summarization command-line tool that records, transcribes, and summarizes meetings entirely on the user's own machine without sending data to external servers. It is MIT-licensed and actively maintained, with v0.12.0 released in June 2026, and is written primarily in Python with a Swift component for system audio capture. On macOS 14.2 and later it captures system audio through Core Audio, and it transcribes with WhisperX to produce word-level timestamps, with optional speaker diarization via PyAnnote. For summaries it ships with a built-in local model (Phi-4-mini) and can also connect to Ollama or OpenAI-compatible backends, offering multiple templates tailored to meetings, lectures, and brief summaries. A standout feature is its natural-language search: the ask command lets users query across their stored meeting notes to retrieve relevant information. Quality-of-life features include silence-based auto-stop so recordings end cleanly when a meeting goes quiet. Because it is a CLI distributed through GitHub and runs entirely on local hardware, ownscribe targets developers and privacy-focused users who prefer scriptable, terminal-driven workflows over a graphical meeting notetaker while keeping all audio and transcripts on-device. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
CFAI is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); ownscribe is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | CFAI | ownscribe |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | Local on-device transcription using Faster Whisper, so audio never leaves the computer | Local-first recording, transcription, and summarization via CLI |
| Standout feature | Bot-free capture of microphone and system audio at the OS level (no 'recording started' notice) | System audio capture on macOS 14.2+ through Core Audio |
| Team usage | Speaker diarization with automatic speaker labels in transcripts | WhisperX transcription with word-level timestamps |
| Integrations | AI summaries and action items, generated by Claude or a local LLM | Optional speaker diarization via PyAnnote |
| Languages & capture | Real-time 'Cognitive Map' that visualizes conversation topics and flow | Local summarization with a built-in Phi-4-mini model, plus Ollama and OpenAI-compatible backends |
| Best-fit workflow | Works across any call platform including Zoom, Teams, Google Meet, and Discord | Natural-language search across meeting notes with the ask command |
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.
ownscribe
Choose ownscribe if you need developers capturing and summarizing meetings from the terminal on a mac — strengths include runs entirely on-device with no data sent to external servers.
CFAI
ownscribe
It depends on your workflow. CFAI is strong for capturing private meeting notes and summaries without a recording bot joining the call, while ownscribe is strong for developers capturing and summarizing meetings from the terminal on a mac. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
CFAI is a free tier with paid upgrades and ownscribe 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.
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