Daisy: Local-first, open-source macOS meeting recorder and AI notes app that transcribes on-device and exposes meetings to AI tools through a local MCP server. Pluely: A lightweight open-source desktop AI meeting assistant that captures system audio for live transcription and on-call answers without joining as a visible bot. We compare them on cost, capture approach, and day-to-day fit so you can choose faster.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist Daisy when recording and transcribing meetings privately on a mac without cloud upload matters most, and Pluely when running a privacy-conscious, locally processed meeting helper via ollama matters most. Run both through a week of actual calls to see which suits your workflow.
Local-first, open-source macOS meeting recorder and AI notes app that transcribes on-device and exposes meetings to AI tools through a local MCP server.
A lightweight open-source desktop AI meeting assistant that captures system audio for live transcription and on-call answers without joining as a visible bot.
Daisy, from Addicted Studio, is a local-first meeting recorder and AI notes application for macOS that records meetings on the Mac, transcribes them on the device, and then exposes the captured conversations as a local MCP server for AI tools. It captures both microphone and system audio from any source, including Zoom, Google Meet, Telegram, and other apps, using ScreenCaptureKit, and performs on-device transcription with WhisperKit plus speaker identification via Pyannote diarization, so audio never leaves the Mac unless the user explicitly enables a cloud LLM provider. Beyond raw transcription, Daisy generates structured notes with action items and follow-ups and supports multiple summarization backends including Apple Intelligence, Anthropic, and OpenAI, as well as MCP. Because it runs a local MCP server, tools such as Claude Desktop and Cursor can read recorded meetings directly, and Daisy can export results to Notion, Linear, Attio, Slack, or arbitrary webhooks. It offers several capture modes covering meeting recording, voice dictation, and quick voice notes. Daisy is a native Mac application (not Electron) for Apple Silicon, is fully open source on GitHub under the Apache 2.0 license, and emphasizes privacy with no telemetry, tracking, or required account. The project maintains a product site at mydaisy.io with installation, FAQ, and support documentation. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Pluely is an open-source AI meeting assistant created by independent developer Srikanthnani and released in 2025 as a privacy-first, bot-free alternative to commercial in-meeting copilots. Built with Tauri, the app is roughly 10MB and launches quickly, running as an always-on-top overlay on macOS (Apple Silicon and Intel), Windows, and Linux. Rather than sending a participant into your call, Pluely captures system audio and microphone input directly on your device, converts speech to text, and can surface AI responses and notes during a meeting, interview, or presentation. It is bring-your-own-key, so users connect their own provider credentials; it supports a wide range of large language models, including OpenAI, Anthropic Claude, Google Gemini, Grok, Mistral, Cohere, Ollama, and custom endpoints, alongside multiple speech-to-text engines such as Whisper, Deepgram, ElevenLabs, Groq, and Azure. Because it is GPL-licensed and fully inspectable, teams can audit or modify the code, and local model options via Ollama allow processing to stay on the machine. As an indie project it depends on external API keys for most capabilities and is still maturing. Confirm features and any usage policies on the official site. Pricing varies by plan. Check the official website for current pricing.
Best suited for
Daisy is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Pluely is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Daisy | Pluely |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | Local recording of mic and system audio from any source via ScreenCaptureKit | Bot-free capture of system audio and microphone for live transcription |
| Standout feature | On-device transcription with WhisperKit and speaker diarization via Pyannote | Always-on-top overlay app for macOS, Windows, and Linux |
| Team usage | Structured AI notes with action items and follow-ups | Bring-your-own-key support for many LLMs (OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, Grok, Mistral, Cohere, Ollama, custom) |
| Integrations | Multiple summarization backends: Apple Intelligence, Anthropic, OpenAI, and MCP | Multiple speech-to-text providers (Whisper, Deepgram, ElevenLabs, Groq, Azure, and others) |
| Languages & capture | Local MCP server so Claude Desktop, Cursor, and similar tools can read meetings | Lightweight (~10MB) and fast to launch |
| Best-fit workflow | Exports to Notion, Linear, Attio, Slack, or custom webhooks | Open source under GPL with optional local processing via Ollama |
Daisy
Choose Daisy if you need recording and transcribing meetings privately on a mac without cloud upload — strengths include fully local-first with audio kept on-device unless a cloud llm is explicitly enabled.
Pluely
Choose Pluely if you need getting live transcription and ai assistance during meetings without a visible bot in the call — strengths include free and open source with fully inspectable code.
Daisy
Pluely
It depends on your workflow. Daisy is strong for recording and transcribing meetings privately on a mac without cloud upload, while Pluely is strong for getting live transcription and ai assistance during meetings without a visible bot in the call. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Daisy is a free tier with paid upgrades and Pluely 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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