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. Read.ai: Meeting summaries with engagement and sentiment analytics Here's where each one pulls ahead on pricing, features, and the meetings it suits best.
How Hosiqo compares and tests toolsFinal recommendation
Shortlist Daisy when recording and transcribing meetings privately on a mac without cloud upload matters most, and Read.ai when personal meeting coaching matters most. Trial each on a few real meetings before you commit — the better fit usually shows fast.
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.
Meeting summaries with engagement and sentiment analytics
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
Read.ai generates AI summaries, transcripts, and live notes for meetings, and adds a personalized meeting coach with speaker and engagement analytics. It works across Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams, supports 20+ languages, and integrates with Slack, Salesforce, HubSpot, Notion, and Jira. The permanent free plan covers 5 meeting transcripts per month (reports kept about a year); video and audio playback are reserved for the Enterprise tier and above.
Best suited for
Daisy is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Read.ai is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
| Feature | Daisy | Read.ai |
|---|---|---|
| Core capability | Local recording of mic and system audio from any source via ScreenCaptureKit | Transcripts and AI summaries |
| Standout feature | On-device transcription with WhisperKit and speaker diarization via Pyannote | Action items |
| Team usage | Structured AI notes with action items and follow-ups | Meeting engagement and sentiment metrics |
| Integrations | Multiple summarization backends: Apple Intelligence, Anthropic, OpenAI, and MCP | Automatic recaps |
| Languages & capture | Local MCP server so Claude Desktop, Cursor, and similar tools can read meetings | Searchable notes |
| Best-fit workflow | Exports to Notion, Linear, Attio, Slack, or custom webhooks | Transcripts and AI summaries |
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.
Read.ai
Choose Read.ai if you need team meeting notes and recaps — strengths include adds meeting analytics on top of notes.
Daisy
Read.ai
It depends on your workflow. Daisy is strong for recording and transcribing meetings privately on a mac without cloud upload, while Read.ai is strong for ai summaries with meeting analytics. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
Daisy is a free tier with paid upgrades and Read.ai is from $15/mo. Check each vendor's pricing page for the latest plans and free-tier limits.
You can — some teams pair them when each covers a different part of the meeting workflow.
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