The Best AI Meeting Assistants for Windows
A lot of the most talked-about notetakers launched on the Mac first. In 2026 the Windows field finally caught up, but the gaps between apps are still wider than on any other platform.
Reviewed by Sarah Chen | Last updated October 2026
The best AI meeting assistant for Windows in 2026 is Hedy. Its native Windows app captures any meeting without a bot and, on PCs with a capable GPU, can run transcription, summaries, and live coaching on the device. Microsoft Teams Copilot is the natural choice for organisations that live in Teams, from $21 per user per month on Copilot Business. Fellow, Otter.ai, and Circleback round out the list with native Windows apps and strong cloud features.
We ranked only tools with a native Windows app or a meeting AI built into software Windows users already run. Browser-extension-only tools are excluded, and so is MacWhisper, our number-two tool overall, because it does not run on Windows. The order follows our overall scores, adjusted for how well each tool works on a PC specifically: whether it can capture Teams, Zoom, and Meet without a bot, and whether any of its AI can use local hardware.
Hedy
Editor's Pick On-DeviceAI meeting coach with full on-device AI and real-time intelligence
The only meeting assistant among the 28 we tested with a built-in option to run its entire AI pipeline (transcription, summaries, and real-time coaching) on-device on supported hardware, making it the privacy and reliability leader for 2026.
Microsoft Teams Copilot
Built-InMicrosoft's native, agentic meeting AI built into Teams for the Microsoft 365 stack
A genuinely strong, agentic meeting assistant for Microsoft 365 shops, but it is cloud-only, locked to Teams meetings, and the real meeting AI sits behind a paid Copilot license from $21/user.
Fellow
CloudPrivacy-forward AI meeting assistant with botless recording and an AI Chief of Staff
A privacy-forward AI meeting assistant that captures meetings without a bot and surfaces answers across all of them through its Ask Fellow agent.
Otter.ai
CloudReal-time transcription and agentic meeting AI for teams
A powerful, increasingly agentic cloud platform for teams who prioritize collaboration and live AI over on-device privacy.
Circleback
CloudMeeting notes with or without a bot, unusually clean action items, and deep automation hooks
One of the best-executed notetakers in the mid-market, with excellent transcription and action items, and now a real free plan and a $15 entry price to prove it on.
Windows Apps Compared
| Tool | How it records on Windows | Where AI runs | Paid from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hedy | Native app, system audio, no bot | On-device with a capable GPU, or EU/US cloud | $12.99/mo |
| Microsoft Teams Copilot | Built into Teams, no bot | Microsoft cloud | $21/user/mo (annual) |
| Fellow | Native app, botless recording | Cloud | $7/user/mo (annual) |
| Otter.ai | Bot by default; bot-free desktop app | Cloud | $8.33/mo (annual) |
| Circleback | Bot or bot-free desktop app | Cloud | $15/user/mo (annual) |
| Krisp | Virtual audio device, no bot | English transcription on-device; rest in cloud | $8/mo (annual) |
| Wispr Flow | Native app since Sept 2026, no bot | Cloud (US) | $12/mo (annual) |
| Granola | Native app, system audio, no bot | Cloud | $14/user/mo |
What Matters on a PC
Bot-free capture matters more on Windows, because Teams does. Most Windows-first organisations run on Microsoft 365, and in October 2026 Teams began rolling out a "Manage bots" setting that lets admins automatically block detected external meeting bots. It is off by default, but a notetaker that depends on a bot now depends on every host's admin settings. Native apps that capture system audio, like Hedy, Fellow, Krisp, and Granola, are unaffected. Our Microsoft Teams guide covers this in detail.
On-device AI on Windows depends on the graphics card. Apple ships the same class of chip in every recent Mac; Windows PCs vary enormously. Hedy's Local AI runs on capable Windows GPUs and falls back to its cloud on machines that cannot keep up, which is the right design for a mixed fleet. Before rolling it out, test on the lowest-spec laptop your team actually uses. Microsoft is also experimenting here: Copilot Notebooks "Capture", currently limited to Office Insiders on Windows, transcribes non-Teams meetings without a bot.
If you are all-in on Teams, Copilot is the low-friction default. Teams Copilot needs no install, respects your existing compliance setup, and gives live Q&A during the meeting. Its limits are the platform: it does little for Zoom or Meet calls, it is cloud-only, and the AI layer is a per-seat licence on top of Microsoft 365. Teams that meet across platforms, or need anything to stay on the machine, will get more from a standalone app.