OpenOats and Wave are both AI meeting assistants for recording, transcription, and summaries, compared here on pricing, features, and workflow fit. OpenOats: Open-source macOS meeting note-taker that transcribes calls locally and surfaces relevant talking points from your own notes in real time. Wave: Cross-platform AI note taker that records and transcribes meetings, calls, and voice memos into summaries. 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 OpenOats when getting live, context-aware prompts from your own notes during sales or customer calls matters most, and Wave when recording browser-based meetings without a bot joining matters most. Both record across Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams; trial each on real meetings before committing.
Open-source macOS meeting note-taker that transcribes calls locally and surfaces relevant talking points from your own notes in real time.
Auto-saved transcripts and session logs to local filesLive retrieval of relevant talking points from your own notes during meetingsMIT-licensed, self-hostable Swift application
Cross-platform AI note taker that records and transcribes meetings, calls, and voice memos into summaries.
Apps for iOS, Android, web, Mac, Windows, and ChromeBot-free tab audio capture plus combined tab and mic modeEncrypted cloud storage with no model training on user data
OpenOats is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium); Wave is a free tier with paid upgrades (freemium). Always confirm current pricing on each vendor's site before buying.
Real-time local transcription of both sides of a conversation on Apple Silicon
Records meetings, calls, lectures, and voice memos
Standout feature
Live retrieval of relevant talking points from your own notes during meetings
Bot-free tab audio capture plus combined tab and mic mode
Team usage
Window hidden from screen sharing by default for privacy on calls
Speaker-labeled transcripts with summaries and action items
Integrations
Auto-saved transcripts and session logs to local files
Apps for iOS, Android, web, Mac, Windows, and Chrome
Languages & capture
Works fully local via Ollama or with cloud models (OpenRouter, Voyage AI)
Support for dozens of languages
Best-fit workflow
MIT-licensed, self-hostable Swift application
Encrypted cloud storage with no model training on user data
Best for
OpenOats
Choose OpenOats if you need getting live, context-aware prompts from your own notes during sales or customer calls — strengths include local on-device transcription keeps meeting audio private.
Wave
Choose Wave if you need recording browser-based meetings without a bot joining — strengths include bot-free capture across many platforms and devices.
Pros & cons
OpenOats
+ Local on-device transcription keeps meeting audio private
+ Real-time note surfacing acts as a meeting copilot, not just a passive recorder
- Restricted to Apple Silicon Macs on recent macOS versions
Wave
+ Bot-free capture across many platforms and devices
+ Handles both online meetings and in-person voice memos
- Feature set may differ between mobile, web, and extension
FAQ
Is OpenOats or Wave better for AI meeting notes?
It depends on your workflow. OpenOats is strong for getting live, context-aware prompts from your own notes during sales or customer calls, while Wave is strong for recording browser-based meetings without a bot joining. Both transcribe and summarize meetings.
How do OpenOats and Wave compare on price?
OpenOats is a free tier with paid upgrades and Wave 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 OpenOats and Wave?
Yes. Many teams run more than one meeting assistant when the workflows are complementary and the budget is justified.