Updated September 2026
The private Read AI alternative
Read AI sends an assistant into the meeting and keeps the recording, transcript, and notes in its cloud. If the problem is the bot in the room, or the fact that the conversation lives in someone else's account, a local app does both of those differently.
macOS (Apple Silicon) & Windows (64-bit) · Free 7-day trial · No card required.
| Private Notetaker | Read AI | |
|---|---|---|
| Where meetings are processed | 100% on your device | Processes meetings in Read's cloud and stores them in your Read account |
| Bots in your meetings | Never | Read Assistant joins your calls |
| Works offline | Yes | No, it needs their cloud |
| How privacy is enforced | Architecture: audio never leaves your device | Policy: SOC 2 Type II audits; HIPAA listed on the Enterprise+ plan only |
| Where your meetings live | Only on your own disk | Meeting data stored in your Read account (AWS us-east-1 by default) |
| Price | $15/mo or $149 once, yours forever | Free for 5 transcripts/mo; Pro $19.75/user/mo (or $15 billed annually) |
Read AI facts and pricing as published 21 September 2026. Free tier capped at 5 meeting transcripts per month.
Their privacy is a policy.
Ours is architecture.
Privacy by policy
Every cloud note taker
- Hosted in a chosen region, so you trust where the servers are
- Encrypted in transit and at rest, so you trust the keys are handled well
- Deleted on request, so you trust the deletion actually happens
- “We don’t train on your data”, so you trust the pledge outlives the roadmap
Privacy by architecture
Private Notetaker
- ✓Audio is captured, transcribed, and summarized on your hardware
- ✓There is no server holding your meetings to breach or subpoena
- ✓Nothing to delete, because nothing was ever collected
- ✓No pledge required. The data simply is not there
Don't take our word for it. Turn WiFi off and watch it keep working.
I built this for myself. I live in back-to-back client calls, and I was never comfortable piping confidential conversations about clients' revenue, ad accounts, and contracts through someone else's cloud just to get a summary. So I made a note taker where everything stays on my machine. I have used it every working day since. Now I am opening it up.
Simple pricing. Either way, it is all yours.
Available for Mac & Windows. Pay once or monthly, whichever suits you.
Monthly
Cancel anytime. The notes you took stay yours.
- ✓Unlimited meetings and recording time
- ✓Local transcription and AI summaries
- ✓Full-history search on your device
- ✓Light and dark mode, Mac + Windows
- ✓No account required to take notes
Lifetime
Pay once, yours forever. Includes updates.
- ✓Unlimited meetings and recording time
- ✓Local transcription and AI summaries
- ✓Full-history search on your device
- ✓Light and dark mode, Mac + Windows
- ✓No account required to take notes
- ✓Never a subscription
Prefer to try first? Download the app and use it free for 7 days, no card needed. Buying charges right away and is backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Read AI questions, answered
Does Read AI process meetings in the cloud? +
Yes. Read's help centre says that when it joins a meeting it captures audio and video, generates a transcript and a summary, and stores that data in your Read account. Storage is encrypted in AWS us-east-1 by default. Private Notetaker transcribes and writes notes on your Mac or Windows PC, so audio never leaves the device.
Does Read AI join meetings with a bot? +
Yes. The Read Assistant joins Zoom, Google Meet, and Teams. Read's security overview says you will see either Read as a participant or a visible in-meeting indicator, and the host can remove it. Connecting a calendar turns on auto-join, which you control per meeting with an Add Read? toggle. Private Notetaker never appears in the participant list.
What is the difference between Private Notetaker and Read AI? +
Read AI is a cloud meeting assistant: it joins the call, processes the meeting on its servers, and stores the report in your Read account. Private Notetaker is a local app for Mac and Windows. Recording, transcription, and summaries run on your device, it works offline, and no bot joins. $15/mo or a $149 lifetime license, with a 7-day free trial and no card required.
Does Read AI work offline? +
No. Read needs its cloud to transcribe and write the report. Its desktop and mobile apps can record an in-person meeting or a call on an unsupported platform, and you can upload a recording, but the transcript and notes are still produced by Read's service. Private Notetaker transcribes and summarizes with no internet connection.
Where does Read AI store recordings compared with Private Notetaker? +
Read stores meeting data in your Read account. Audio and video playback is listed on the Enterprise plan and above; the free plan is capped at 5 transcripts a month. Private Notetaker stores recordings, transcripts, and notes as files on your disk. Nothing is uploaded to a Private Notetaker server.
Is Read AI HIPAA compliant? +
Read's pricing page lists HIPAA compliance on the Enterprise+ plan ($39.75/user/mo, or $29.75 billed annually), not on Free, Pro, or Enterprise. Private Notetaker does not claim HIPAA certification. Audio is processed on your device and notes stay on your disk. That is an architecture fact, not a compliance badge. Check the requirements for your profession.
Further reading
Your meetings are nobody else's business.
Download the AI note taker that keeps everything on your device. Free for 7 days, no account, no card.
Mac & Windows.