Getting started

From download to your first meeting notes takes about five minutes. Most of that is the one-time model download.

1. Install

Download the latest release (DMG) and open it. Drag Abschrift into Applications. Requirements: Apple Silicon, M1 or newer, and macOS 14.2+.

2. First launch

Abschrift walks you through a few one-time steps:

• Permissions — macOS asks for Microphone and System Audio Recording. Grant both. If you declined by accident, re-enable them in System Settings → Privacy & Security.
• Retention — decide how long transcripts live before Abschrift deletes them. Notes stay, and recordings can be kept for segment replay. How retention works
• Privacy & the law — decide whether Abschrift may recognize speakers across meetings. It's off until you opt in, and the step reminds you to announce the recording. Recording & the law
• Models — a one-time ~0.5 GB download, compiled for your Mac's Neural Engine. After this, transcription works fully offline.
• Notes — turn on the built-in local engine, or pick Ollama, a cloud key, or transcript-only. You can change this any time in Settings. The four options

3. Record your first meeting

Hit the red button in the sidebar before or during your meeting. Abschrift records your mic and the audio your Mac plays. It works with every meeting app and never joins the call. When you're done, hit stop — transcription, speaker separation, and notes run automatically, with live progress. A 40-minute meeting typically processes in under a minute.

Choosing a microphone: Abschrift uses your Mac's default mic unless you pick one in Settings → Recording. While recording, the mic chip on the recording screen is a live switcher — grab your headset mid-call. System audio needs no picking: everything your Mac plays is captured, whatever speakers or headphones it goes to.

In-person meetings: when everyone shares one room and this Mac's microphone, use the arrow next to the record button and pick Record in-person meeting. Each voice from the microphone becomes its own speaker instead of all becoming “You”. With speaker recognition on, Abschrift recognizes your own voice and still labels you “You”. Recorded in the wrong mode? If the recording was kept, re-process the meeting from its ⋯ menu — Abschrift also suggests this itself when an online recording contains several microphone voices. The consent rules are the same as for any recording.

4. Name your speakers

New voices appear as “Speaker 1”, “Speaker 2”, and so on. Open Speakers in the sidebar footer and type real names. With speaker recognition on (onboarding, or Settings → Speaker recognition), Abschrift remembers each voice and recognizes it in future meetings. Renames flow back through your existing transcripts and notes. Details: Speaker profiles.

More