How to take meeting notes without a bot
Key factsGranola and Krisp capture meeting notes from system audio without a bot joining
- Granola listens to a Mac's computer audio and mixes it with typed notes, and never joins Zoom as a participant.
- Krisp sits on system audio to reduce background noise, and nothing named Krisp needs to appear in the meeting's participant list.
- Fathom offers a bot-free capture mode on Mac as an alternative to Granola.
- Browser-only note-taking tools almost always send a bot into the meeting, unlike desktop apps with audio permission.
- In two-party consent regions, users must verbally disclose that they are recording on their own machine since there is no bot to announce it.
A notetaker bot is a third participant. On a sales call or a candidate call, people change how they talk when they see it. In some places, recording without a clear yes is not just rude, it is a legal problem.
You can still get a transcript and a summary. You capture audio on your machine instead of sending a guest into the meeting.
The short answer
Use Granola if you are on a Mac and you want notes that read like you wrote them. It listens to the computer's audio, mixes that with what you type, and never joins Zoom as a user. New users get the first month free through our Granola link.
Use Krisp if the first problem is noise (cafe, kids, open office) and notes are the extra. Krisp sits on the system audio. Nothing named Krisp has to appear in the participant list.
Fathom also has a bot-free capture mode on Mac. It is in the meeting assistants guide. I still send most "no bot" people to Granola first.
How the no-bot setup actually works
- Install the desktop app. Browser-only tools almost always send a bot.
- Grant microphone or system-audio permission. That is the whole trick. The model hears what you hear.
- Join the call as yourself. Do not add a recorder from the marketplace.
- Take a few typed notes on the moments that matter. The AI is better when it has your highlights to hang on.
- After hangup, wait for the summary. Skim the action items. They will be wrong sometimes. That is still faster than a blank page.
If you skip the meeting, there is no bot sitting in for you. That is the trade. Fireflies can attend without you. Granola cannot.
Tell people you are recording anyway
Bot-free is not a stealth mode. If the other side is in a two-party consent region, say it. "I am recording on my machine for notes" is one sentence. The bot's job, when it exists, is partly that announcement. When you remove the bot, you have to say it yourself.
When you should use a bot anyway
- You need someone (or something) in the call when you cannot attend.
- The team wants a shared recorder with a name everyone recognizes.
- Legal wants a visible disclosure in the participant list.
Then use Fireflies or Otter and stop fighting the category. The meeting assistants page covers that side.
After the notes
If the failure is that the follow-up email never goes out, that is Fyxer, not a better transcript. If the failure is that tasks die in the doc, that is Circleback. Do not buy a third notetaker for those jobs.
Related
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