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Steno is a macOS app that records, transcribes, and summarizes meetings using AI models that run entirely on your device. By default there are no cloud uploads and no accounts required; the only outbound requests are model downloads during setup and update checks on launch. Your audio, transcripts, and summaries are stored locally in ~/Library/Application Support/stenoai/ (you can change the location in Settings).

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How it works

Steno runs a local pipeline on every recording:
  1. Record — captures microphone audio, system audio (both sides of a call), or both simultaneously
  2. Transcribe — runs Whisper locally to produce a verbatim transcript with speaker labels
  3. Summarize — passes the transcript to a small language model running via Ollama on your Mac to produce structured notes: summary, key topics, and action items
  4. Query — ask natural-language questions against any saved note from the inline ask bar
Every step runs offline. Steno does not communicate with any external server unless you explicitly configure a cloud model (OpenAI, Anthropic, or a custom endpoint) as an optional alternative to the local model.

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Who it’s for

Steno is built for professionals who work with confidential audio:
  • Healthcare — clinical consultations, case reviews, MDT meetings
  • Legal — client calls, depositions, strategy sessions
  • Finance — investment committee meetings, client briefings
  • Any role where recordings leaving your device is not acceptable
It is also used by developers, researchers, and individuals who simply prefer their data to stay on their own hardware.

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What Steno is not

Steno is not a meeting bot. It does not join your video calls as a participant, does not require calendar access, and does not require you to share a link with other attendees. It records audio from your Mac’s audio system — no bot appears and the app does not notify other participants. Consent obligations remain yours to manage under your local laws and policies.

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Supported platforms

macOS 12 (Monterey) or later. Apple Silicon and Intel both supported.
No, in the default local configuration. After the initial download and model installation, Steno runs offline — transcription and summarization happen on your Mac. The app still performs a lightweight update check on launch, and if you opt into a cloud summarization model (OpenAI, Anthropic, or a custom endpoint) it will reach that provider’s API for summary generation only.
All data is stored in ~/Library/Application Support/stenoai/. This includes recordings (recordings/), transcripts (transcripts/), and summaries (output/). Nothing is stored remotely.
Yes. The source code is available at github.com/ruzin/stenoai under the MIT license.
A Mac with at least 8GB of RAM. Apple Silicon (M1 or later) gives the best transcription and summarization performance. Intel Macs are supported but will run more slowly on larger models.