AI Note Taking: A Smarter Way to Manage Meetings

Work meetings have changed over the decades, but no matter the era, we’ve always needed meeting notes. The note-taking process  — from pen and paper, to typewriters, to sticky notes, to Google docs — has evolved, but the reason why we take meeting notes remains the same: to document key decisions and action items, ensuring we are meeting with a clear purpose.

Right until the AI era, taking meeting notes has always meant having to balance participating in the meeting with trying to manually take notes in real-time. No matter how we did it, it’s always been a challenge. Worse, research shows that the role of the meeting note-taker was often taken up by women and visible minorities, impeding them from being more active participants and decreasing the overall flow of diverse ideas and perspectives.

We’re in a new era, and manual note-taking is about to become a thing of the past. 

Now, AI note-taking is here and ready to transform how you meet. AI meeting assistants such as Fellow are able to listen to your meeting, take notes for you, and provide accurate and detailed AI meeting notes faster than you can type. They’re also increasingly popular — our 2024 State of Meetings Report found the use of AI in meetings grew 17X between January and August, and we’re expecting to see these numbers increase drastically in 2025.

In this guide, we’ll go over how AI note-taking can improve your meeting workflow, best practices for using them, the best tools currently available, and hear from business leaders who’ve taken the leap to ditch traditional note-taking.

What is an AI meeting note taker?

An AI meeting note taker takes the transcript from a meeting and generates a summary that includes details such as decisions made and action items, determined by context cues from the call.

To analyze a meeting, most AI note takers have an AI meeting assistant or bot that joins as an attendee for each meeting. It silently listens to the call, records it, and then is able to summarize that recording.

When AI was first developed for meetings, the application was mostly providing meeting transcripts by analyzing a recording. That meant you could see what was said, but to gather insights you’d have to manually read the meeting transcripts and draw conclusions. While definitely a step up from trying to transcribe by yourself in real-time, it still left a lot for attendees to do on their own.

As AI has gotten more sophisticated in 2024, we’ve seen the addition of AI features that can not only tell us what was said, but provide further context. Most useful is an accurate summary that distills key points, so you don’t have to do it on your own by reading the transcript. Now, AI apps can also identify and assign action items, as well as note decisions and who made them.

Essentially, this current generation of AI note takers takes away all of the manual work of the past. While you focus on engaging in your meeting, the AI note taker takes care of everything else, providing an accurate and detailed recap that can be reviewed and shared.

The benefits of AI note takers

There are many benefits of switching from manual note-taking to AI note-taking. Let’s review the top ones.

1. Improved focus in meetings

It is good meeting etiquette to limit distractions as much as possible, but that’s hard when you’re trying to type notes while people are talking. And beyond good etiquette, it’s difficult to fully engage in a meeting when you keep having to pop into another tab or window to take notes, or look down at a notebook.

This is where AI note-taking really shines. Instead of splitting your focus between your meeting and your meeting notes, you can put all your attention towards the meeting. That means being more available to contribute ideas, answer questions, or make decisions, as well as not missing any context to facilitate those contributions. 

And it’s not just you — with an AI note taker in attendance, no one has to take their own personal notes, so everyone will be just as engaged. Often if someone is designated as the note taker for a particular meeting, that means their voice has to take a back seat. AI note takers democratize meetings by giving everyone the same opportunity to participate.

2. Consistency across notes

Distraction isn’t the only reason it’s not preferable to have every attendee take their own meeting notes. When you have multiple meeting notes, you have more room for error.

Everyone comes to a meeting with their perspective, bias, and attention span. Given that, it’s no surprise that any two people’s meeting notes may look different. In a meeting with many people, you can imagine how many different versions of events may be recorded in meeting notes.

The benefit of an AI note taker is that it creates a single source of truth for your meeting with a single set of automatic meeting notes to be shared between attendees. AI also doesn’t come with the kind of biases that humans have, whether conscious or not. 

An AI note taker pays equal attention to every attendee and treats their words with the same weight. In a meeting, attendees may feel subconsciously biased to pay more attention to a manager, for example, potentially missing something said by someone with lower seniority. With AI note-taking, that’s no longer an issue, and everyone can be on the same page.

3. Shareability and centralization

The other advantage of having a single source of truth with automated meeting notes is that they’re easier to share.

AI note-taking makes it possible to skip a meeting but still get quickly caught up on what happened. Later on, we’ll look deeper at what AI features to look for in a note taker, but those with a central library of recordings and summaries is ideal for asynchronous sharing. 

With an AI note-taking library, for example, return from a week’s vacation and read the summaries, action items, and decisions made for every important meeting they missed. For even more information, they could even read the meeting transcript or watch the full recording.

Again, having centralized meeting notes taken with AI means having a single source of truth that’s accessible to everyone.

4. Increased accountability

AI note-taking is also a boon for accountability for your colleagues and reports. 

When everyone takes their own personal notes by hand, they might record different priorities and action items. It’s not on purpose — it’s just that it’s hard to both listen, participate, and write meeting notes at the same time. Inevitably, some things will get lost with manual note-taking.

With AI note-taking, action items are recorded in a central place, giving visibility to all attendees on the tasks to be done after the meeting. That also makes it easier for managers to follow-up on tasks because they have documentation to refer back to.

For your own workflow, an AI note taker can generate a running list of action items so you’re always on top of what needs to be done.

5. Team-specific benefits

The above benefits apply to employees organization-wide, but these tools also have applications that apply to specific teams and departments. Let’s take a look at some of them.

Engineering

Building products requires teamwork and communication that can be made easier by note-taking apps. AI tools such as Fellow allow Engineering and Product teams to create collaborative agendas ahead of every meeting, so nothing is missed in team meetings. During meetings such as project kickoffs, check-ins, and retrospectives, AI is able to accurately capture the technical language and decisions made. Then, after, AI recaps all the work to be done.

Marketing

Marketers need to move fast, and well-built note taking tools can do that with AI. For example, an AI note-taking tool can sync up with project management tools such as Asana, Monday, and Linear, in addition to keeping track of action items and decisions. As well, with a central library of recorded meetings, marketers can get caught up on calls from the sales or customer success teams to gain valuable customer insights to guide campaigns.

Operations

The key benefit of a note taker for operations teams is the centralization of knowledge. With meetings recorded, transcribed, and summarized, everyone across the organization can quickly get caught up on what each team is working on. This is also great for new hires, who will have access to a library of important meetings, such as Town Halls.

Sales

Sales calls are the most critical part of a sales rep’s job and a note taker makes it easier to fully engage in those calls while the notes are taken care of. Having a library of those calls also enables team members to learn from each other and gain insights into prospects and customers. That’s also an advantage for sales managers to provide feedback and coach their reps.

Customer Success

The details matter for customer success teams, and having a record of every call with customers means you’ll never miss a thing. A shared library also ensures a smooth transition of customers from sales to CS and seamless continued relationships. Customer success calls are also fantastic intel for the whole organization, and an AI note taker makes it easy to share those insights.

Human Resources

AI note takers are especially helpful during the recruiting and hiring process. Be more present during interviews while AI takes care of the notes, then easily share those notes with other stakeholders in the process.

The risks of AI note takers (and how to choose the right one)

AI note-taking tools come with many benefits, but there are also potential downsides. While they can be mitigated by choosing the right tool with robust features, these are the points to keep in mind.

Accuracy

An AI note-taking app is only useful if it’s accurate — otherwise your notes may lead you astray and just cause frustration. Look for apps that have social proof, such as well-known customers and good reviews. For instance, Fellow has more than 2,200 reviews on G2 which you can read here. 

Privacy

Not all calls should be recorded, and in some regions, having consent to record is vital. Look for an AI note-taking tool that makes it clear to all participants that it is recording, and that makes it easy to simply turn off recording when you don’t want it. Fellow, for example, allows users to create rules about which meetings the AI meeting assistant will join, and which ones it will skip.

The other privacy issue is who has access to recordings, meeting transcripts, and summaries. A company-wide Town Hall, for example, should be accessible to everyone, but one-on-ones conducted by HR should be restricted only to those involved. Again, Fellow has robust permissions controls to make sure only those who should have access to particular recordings will have it.

Security

Using an AI note-taking app means entrusting it with important company information and data. You’ll inevitably be recording sensitive, proprietary information that you need to ensure stays secure.

Look for a tool, like Fellow, that doesn’t allow meeting data to be used to train AI models. As well, Fellow’s security protocol includes SOC 2 Type II compliance, multi-factor authentication, intrusion detection systems, and annual third party Pen Tests.

AI note-taking best practices

Here are some tips for making the most of your AI note-taking app.

1. Leverage meeting recaps for accountability

An AI note-taker app can do a lot of the heavy lifting for you in meetings, which is great — but don’t forget to review those meeting notes.

There are two times when it’s best to look over your AI-generated meeting summary and notes. First, is right after the meeting. While you were engrossed in the conversation, it’s possible you missed an important detail or even a task assigned to you. Give the recap a once-over after a meeting to see if there’s anything you need to take action on right away.

“I find AI recaps extremely helpful because they call out any action items that are assigned to me that I might not have picked up on in the call,” says Alexandra Sunderland, Fellow’s Director of Engineering.

The other time when you should review a recap is before your next recurring meeting with a colleague or team. Take a moment to review what happened last time, what action items were assigned, and what needs to be followed up on. Fellow automatically sends a pre-meeting brief summarizing what happened in past meetings.

“The pre-meeting brief that I get before each one-on-one allows me to keep track of and understand what has been or has not been accomplished throughout the time since our last meeting,” says Tyler Ryll, Fellow’s Director of Customer Success.

2. Create channels in the recordings library

Using an AI note-taking app will generate as many recordings and summaries as your organization has meetings, and those will pile up quickly. 

Make your recording and meeting note library more useful and actionable by organizing it into channels. That way, team members can quickly find the meetings they need more information on, whether it’s a candidate interview, a Town Hall, or a sales call.

Dave Kramer, Fellow’s Head of Revenue, said he loves that some meetings can be earmarked for the whole organization, such as calls with customers.

“That way the entire company can view them, anyone from product and marketing, if they want to get access to a call where a customer is asking for something specific,” he says.

3. Integrate the AI note taker with your tech stack

The current era of AI note takers are much more than just a stand-alone app. The best ones can integrate with your other tools, so explore what your app of choice can do.

For example, Fellow’s integrations include multiple video conferencing apps, including Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams. As well, productivity apps such as Jira, Asana, and Monday also have integrations.

For customer-facing teams, Fellow also syncs up with Hubspot and Salesforce.

“As a salesperson, we’re connected to so many different parts of the organization and thereby have to live in so many different tools,” says Charlie Bahamonde, Fellow’s Director of Sales.

“By Fellow integrating with HubSpot, it allows us to live more frequently in the place that we spend most of our time, which is Fellow, because most of our time is spent in customer meetings.”

4. Set up safeguards

We mentioned earlier that AI note takers come with some risks, so set yourself up to address them. Create rules about when your AI meeting assistant can join calls, and when it shouldn’t. For example, you can tell Fellow’s Copilot not to join meetings involving your legal team, or to not join meetings with a keyword like “coffee chat” or “personal.”

Also remember to set up permissions for which team members can view which calls in your recording library.

8 features to look for in an AI meeting note taker

In the next section we’re going to look at some current options for AI note-taking apps, but what features should you be looking for? A comprehensive note taker will do much more than just transcribe recordings. Here are the AI features to look for when you choose a note taker.

1. Automated summaries

All AI note-taking apps should be able to provide an accurate meeting transcript, but that’s not all it should do. Look for a note-taker that also provides an AI-generated recap that includes an overall meeting summary, as well as decisions made and action items.

Ideally, the app will also share those summaries exactly when you need them. Fellow, for example, sends a post-meeting recap after every recorded call. Then, just before your next call in a recurring series, it sends a pre-meeting brief to remind you what was discussed last time.

2. AI chat bot

A good note taker doesn’t stop being your AI assistant once your meeting is over. Look for an app that has a built-in chat bot that you can ask questions about your meeting, such as, “What did I miss at last week’s Town Hall?” or “What did we decide in my last one-on-one with Stephanie?” The bot will be able to scan through all of your meetings and provide quick answers — just like ChatGPT, but for your meetings.

3. Collaborative agendas

A great AI note taker shows its value in how it assists throughout your entire meeting workflow. By providing a space for creating meeting agendas and linking to relevant documents before the meeting, Fellow can keep your meeting on track and offers a place to take manual notes if you choose to. Fellow also provides a library of meeting agenda templates so no matter what type of meeting you’re having — from a one-on-one to a scrum — there’s a pre-made template to support you.

4. Action items

An AI note taker can go beyond telling you what happened in a meeting to telling what to do after the meeting. Fellow automatically detects and assigns action items during meetings, in addition to the ability to manually assign them in the meeting agenda.

5. Integrations

Your organization’s tech stack works best when your various apps can speak to each other. First, think about your video conferencing software. Whether using Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, or Zoom, your AI note taker needs to be compatible, otherwise you’ll be stuck manually downloading and uploading recordings. Next, look at your most used apps, such as CRMs and productivity apps, and look for an AI note taker with built-in integrations. 

6. Multiple language support

This is an important feature for organizations with globally distributed teams. Your AI note taker should be able to detect and transcribe more than just English and include the languages your teams use to communicate. Fellow transcribes and summarizes meetings in 16 languages.

7. Permission controls

Your AI note-taking app should never show up unexpectedly, or show meeting transcripts and recordings to the wrong people. Look for a note-taking app that has administrative as well as individual-level controls that determine when a meeting should be recorded, and who can view the recording after.

8. Analytics

If you’re going to have an AI note taker attend all your meetings, it’s going to gain valuable insight into your meeting habits, so put that data to work. Fellow analytics can show how many hours are being spent in meetings, how often meeting agendas are employed, how often action items are created, and other valuable information.

The best AI note taker apps in 2024

Now let’s take a look at the best AI note takers currently available and compare their features.

1. Fellow

Fellow is the best of both worlds, offering a best-in-class AI note taker with high accuracy, as well as all the tools needed for meeting management. 

Fellow is the only AI note taker with features for before, during, and after a meeting, including pre and post-meeting briefs, collaborative agendas, and the Ask Copilot chat bot. As well, Fellow is the best solution for enterprise companies, with administrative-level controls and meeting policy options, as well as robust data security.

Features

• AI note taker with transcriptions and human-level summaries
• AI action items
• Meeting analytics
• Collaborative meeting agendas with over 500 templates
• Pre-meeting briefs
• Post-meeting recaps
• Administrative-level controls and permissions
• Ask Fellow Copilot chat bot
• Create clips from meeting recordings
• Search functionality
• Meeting policy prompts

Integrations

More than 50 integrations, including:

• Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams
• Asana, Monday.com, Trello, Linear, ClickUp, and Jira
• Salesforce and Hubspot
• Slack, Notion, and Confluence

Pricing

Fellow’s free version comes with five meeting recordings per user per month, as well as agenda templates, meeting notes, and integrations with Zoom, Google Meet, and Microsoft Teams. Paid plans start at $7 per user.

Learn more about Fellow’s plans here

2. Otter

Otter began as an app that allowed users to upload an audio file and receive a transcription. Now, it can serve as an AI note taker during meetings. 

Cons

• Lacking meeting agenda feature for better preparation 
• No collaborative meeting notes
• Free version can only transcribe up to 30 minutes per conversation
• Pricing is higher than Fellow
• Action items or meeting notes must be tracked separately
• No channels for recordings

Features

• AI note taker
• Uploaded file transcription
• Chat
• AI summaries
• Otter AI chat

Integrations

• Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams
• Hubspot and Salesforce
• Slack
• Google Drive

Pricing

Otter’s free version includes 300 transcription minutes, up to 30 minutes per conversation, and three upload transcriptions. Paid plans start at $8.33 per user.

3. Fireflies

Fireflies is focused on meeting transcription and summaries that include conversational intelligence features to analyze conversations.

Cons

• No meeting agendas
• Only transcribes and summarizes
• No collaborative meeting notes
• Pricing is higher than Fellow
• Limited summaries for free version
• Some reviews say speakers aren’t properly identified

Features

• AI note taker
• AI summaries
• Action items
• Search functionality

Integrations

• Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams
• Hubspot and Salesforce
• Slack and Confluence
• Asana, Jira, and Airtable

Pricing

Fireflies’ free version includes unlimited transcription, but limited summaries, and 800 minutes of storage per user. Paid plans start at $10 per user.

4. Fathom

Like Fireflies, Fathom’s is a tool mainly used for AI recording and transcription, but it also has some other features such as action items and summaries.

Cons

• No meeting guidelines
• Pricing is higher than Fellow
• Reviews say users still need Google Docs for better notes
• Lack of enterprise-level support
• No meeting agendas and templates

Features

• AI note taker
• AI summaries
• Action items
• Ask Fathom chat bot
• Clip sharing

Integrations

• Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams
• Hubspot and Salesforce
• Notion
• Gmail and Google Docs

Pricing

Fathom’s free version has no recording limits, but doesn’t include advanced AI features and integrations. Features like action items and AI summaries are reserved for paid plans, which start at $15 per user.

Case study: Why Workplace Options went all in on AI note-taking

Alan King is the President and CEO at Workplace Options, a global employee assistance and support organization that provides 82 million employees in over 200 countries and territories with access to emotional health, practical health, and physical health support for themselves and for their families.

The problem Alan was encountering was that meetings were too frequent and too inefficient. There was no process in place for creating meeting agendas or designating a note taker, and that meant meetings were slowed down and important decisions and context were getting lost.

But then, Fellow’s AI note taker started attending meetings, providing transcripts and summaries. It was a game-changer.

“The first time I tried it and the Copilot actually didn’t just transcribe but summarized in a way that was not just thoughtful, but accurate — that surprised me,” says Alan.

With note-taking being taken care of by Fellow, meeting attendees were able to focus and get more done. Now, meetings across the organization have high engagement and better follow-through.

“The energy is focused on the problem at hand or the solution or the innovation that’s happening — there’s no constraints,” he says. “There’s freedom that comes when everybody in the room can just engage.”

For Alan, adding an AI note taker to Workplace Options’ tech stack is now a non-negotiable.

“If you’re really interested in cutting back on spending, then you want to find the tools that actually allow you to do more with less, and Fellow makes us do more with less. We have fewer meetings. We have better results,” he says.

AI note-taking FAQ

Here we’ll answer some common questions about AI note taker apps.

What is the best AI note taker?

Fellow is the most comprehensive AI note taker because it offers not only accurate transcriptions and summaries, but supports for your entire meeting workflow, including meeting agendas, pre and post-meeting briefs, an AI chat bot to answer questions about your meetings, and 50+ integrations.

How do I add an AI note taker to Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams?

Look for an AI note taker that has an integration for your preferred video conferencing app. For example, Fellow integrates with Zoom, Google Meet, and Teams, introducing a side-by-side panel that contains your meeting agenda and notes, all without leaving the app. Learn how to invite Copilot here.

How do I remove my AI note taker?

Your AI note taker should have an option to invite or remove its recording tool. With Fellow, you can invite Copilot from either the Fellow app or from your video conferencing tool. If you want Copilot to leave, simply remove it from the call from the attendees panel. Fellow also allows users to set rules for which meetings Copilot will automatically join.

Modernize your meetings with AI note-taking

If you’re still taking meeting notes by hand, you’re living in the past.

AI note takers for meetings have transformed how we meet, taking away tedious manual note-taking and freeing up our attention to actually engage in our meetings. 

We hope this guide has shown you all the advantages of adding an AI note-taking app to your organization’s tech stack.