Meeting Transcriber and SmartDepo are both AI meeting assistants for recording, transcription, and summaries, compared here on pricing, features, and workflow fit. Meeting Transcriber: Open-source, local-first macOS app that auto-records Teams, Zoom, and Webex calls and transcribes, diarizes, and summarizes them entirely on-device. SmartDepo: AI deposition summary platform for litigators that produces cited summaries with page-line citations. They overlap on ai-meeting-assistants, so the right pick depends on team size, budget, and which meeting workflows you automate.
For ai-meeting-assistants workflows, shortlist Meeting Transcriber when privacy-conscious professionals who want meeting transcripts and notes kept on their own mac matters most, and SmartDepo when generating cited page-line summaries of deposition transcripts matters most. Both record across Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams; trial each on real meetings before committing.
Open-source, local-first macOS app that auto-records Teams, Zoom, and Webex calls and transcribes, diarizes, and summarizes them entirely on-device.
Automatic recording of Teams, Zoom, and Webex meetings via a macOS menu bar appDual-track diarization with separate app and microphone tracks for clean speaker separationManual recording of any application plus import of WAV, MP3, M4A, and MP4 files
Meeting Transcriber is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); SmartDepo is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
Human review of AI-generated summaries by legal professionals
Best-fit workflow
Pluggable summarization backends: Claude Code CLI, OpenAI-compatible APIs (Ollama, LM Studio), or transcript-only
Fast turnaround, with summaries produced in minutes
Best for
Meeting Transcriber
Choose Meeting Transcriber if you need privacy-conscious professionals who want meeting transcripts and notes kept on their own mac — strengths include fully open source under the mit license with development in the open on github.
SmartDepo
Choose SmartDepo if you need generating cited page-line summaries of deposition transcripts — strengths include citation-focused output suitable for court filings.
Pros & cons
Meeting Transcriber
+ Fully open source under the MIT license with development in the open on GitHub
+ Runs entirely on-device, so audio, transcripts, and summaries can stay local for privacy
- macOS-only and requires macOS 14.2 or later (no Windows or Linux support)
SmartDepo
+ Citation-focused output suitable for court filings
+ Multiple summary formats tailored to different litigation tasks
- Narrowly focused on deposition summaries rather than live transcription or general meetings
FAQ
Is Meeting Transcriber or SmartDepo better for AI meeting notes?
It depends on your workflow. Meeting Transcriber is strong for privacy-conscious professionals who want meeting transcripts and notes kept on their own mac, while SmartDepo is strong for generating cited page-line summaries of deposition transcripts. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
How do Meeting Transcriber and SmartDepo compare on price?
Meeting Transcriber is a free tier with paid upgrades and SmartDepo is a free tier with paid upgrades. Check each vendor's pricing page for the latest plans and free-tier limits.
Can I use both Meeting Transcriber and SmartDepo?
Yes. Many teams run more than one meeting assistant when the workflows are complementary and the budget is justified.