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. Qualtranscribe: Qualtranscribe is a transcription and translation service for research, legal, and business professionals, pairing human-verified transcripts with an AI option that generates fast drafts, summaries, and qualitative insights. Which one wins depends on your platform mix, budget, and how hands-off you want notes to be.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist Daisy when recording and transcribing meetings privately on a mac without cloud upload matters most, and Qualtranscribe when producing analysis-ready transcripts for academic, clinical, and market research matters most. Try them side by side on real calls before deciding — needs vary by team.
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.
Qualtranscribe is a transcription and translation service for research, legal, and business professionals, pairing human-verified transcripts with an AI option that generates fast drafts, summaries, and qualitative insights.
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
Qualtranscribe (QUALTRANSCRIBE LLC) is a transcription and translation service built primarily for qualitative researchers, market research teams, academic, clinical, legal, and business professionals. Users upload audio or video recordings of interviews, focus groups, and calls, and choose between human-verified transcripts produced by trained transcriptionists or faster AI-generated drafts. Transcripts are delivered with speaker labels, timestamps, and a choice of clean verbatim or full verbatim formatting. Its AI layer, branded Smart Insights Studio, turns uploaded recordings into instant summaries, research memos, thematic analysis, sentiment and emotion mapping, and extracted action items, and can export structured CSV files for direct import into qualitative analysis tools. It supports transcription across many languages and emphasizes confidential handling with HIPAA and GDPR compliance. The platform integrates with NVivo and ATLAS.ti to fit existing qualitative research workflows. Capture is upload-based rather than via a live meeting-joining bot, making it best suited to researchers and analysts who record sessions and need analysis-ready transcripts and first-pass insights rather than real-time meeting note-taking.
Best suited for
Daisy is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Qualtranscribe is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Daisy | Qualtranscribe |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | Local recording of mic and system audio from any source via ScreenCaptureKit | Human-verified transcription with clean or full verbatim options, speaker labels, and timestamps |
| Standout feature | On-device transcription with WhisperKit and speaker diarization via Pyannote | AI transcription drafts via Smart Insights Studio from uploaded recordings |
| Team usage | Structured AI notes with action items and follow-ups | AI-generated summaries, research memos, thematic analysis, sentiment mapping, and action items |
| Integrations | Multiple summarization backends: Apple Intelligence, Anthropic, OpenAI, and MCP | Transcription and translation across many languages |
| Languages & capture | Local MCP server so Claude Desktop, Cursor, and similar tools can read meetings | HIPAA- and GDPR-compliant confidential handling |
| Best-fit workflow | Exports to Notion, Linear, Attio, Slack, or custom webhooks | Integrations and CSV exports for NVivo and ATLAS.ti |
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.
Qualtranscribe
Choose Qualtranscribe if you need transcribing and analyzing qualitative research interviews and focus groups — strengths include combines human-verified accuracy with optional faster ai drafts and insights.
Daisy
Qualtranscribe
It depends on your workflow. Daisy is strong for recording and transcribing meetings privately on a mac without cloud upload, while Qualtranscribe is strong for transcribing and analyzing qualitative research interviews and focus groups. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Daisy is a free tier with paid upgrades and Qualtranscribe 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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