Features
September 2, 2026 · View on GitHub
Record meetings
minutes record # Record from mic
minutes record --title "Standup" --context "Sprint 4 blockers" # With context
minutes record --language ur # Force Urdu (ISO 639-1 code)
minutes record --device "AirPods Pro" # Use specific audio device
minutes record --template standup # Apply a summary template
minutes stop # Stop from another terminal
The desktop app captures your microphone and call audio through ScreenCaptureKit on macOS 15+. Grant Screen Recording and Microphone access, then use the "Call detected" banner. Browser-based Meet and Teams detection is experimental. The CLI needs BlackHole and a Multi-Output Device for system audio. See audio device setup.
Consent disclosure aid
For meetings where participant notice is required, Minutes can show a reminder, require an interactive acknowledgement, and stamp the chosen basis into the markdown frontmatter. This is a disclosure aid, not advice; ensure everyone present consents where required.
minutes record --consent verbal_all_parties
minutes record --consent notice_in_invite --consent-notice "Notice was included in the calendar invite."
[consent]
mode = "remind" # off | remind | require
disclosure_script = "Heads up: I'm using Minutes to transcribe this conversation locally on my device for my own notes. Let me know if you'd prefer I didn't."
# default_basis = "notice_in_invite"
When present, artifacts include:
consent: verbal_all_parties
consent_notice: Heads up: I'm using Minutes to transcribe this conversation locally on my device for my own notes. Let me know if you'd prefer I didn't.
Sensitive meetings
Use a sensitive meeting when you want timed typed markers and a saved meeting artifact, but no audio capture.
minutes sensitive start --title "Board prep"
minutes note "Opened with pricing risk"
minutes sensitive stop
The stop flow writes a normal markdown meeting with capture: none and
sensitivity: restricted. In a terminal, Minutes prompts for a short debrief.
From scripts or other non-interactive callers it saves immediately with
debrief: pending so an assistant can help finish the written summary later.
Take notes during meetings
minutes note "Alex wants monthly billing not annual billing" # Timestamped, feeds into summary
minutes note "Logan agreed" # LLM weights your notes heavily
Process voice memos
minutes process ~/Downloads/voice-memo.m4a # WAV, M4A, MP3, OGG, WebM, MP4, MOV, or AAC
minutes process ~/.minutes/native-captures/2026-05-19-120148-call.voice.wav --type meeting
minutes watch # Auto-process new files in inbox
Search your authorized memory
minutes search "pricing" # Full-text search
minutes search "onboarding" -t memo # Filter by type
minutes actions # Open action items across normal meetings
minutes actions --assignee sarah # Filter by person
minutes list # Recent recordings
Relationship intelligence
minutes people and minutes commitments derive bounded relationship intelligence through a process-private projection of current policy-authorized Markdown. minutes person and minutes research use bounded live-source search instead. Both paths re-attest policy before results are returned; no durable graph cache is trusted.
Cross-meeting intelligence
minutes research "pricing strategy" # Search across normal meetings
minutes person "Alex" # Bounded profile from live normal sources
minutes consistency # Flag contradicting decisions + stale commitments
Live transcript (real-time coaching)
minutes live # Start real-time transcription
minutes transcript --since 2m --include-current # Finals + one provisional current draft
minutes stop # Stop live session
Live and Recording modes stream local transcription. Finalized lines remain the
durable authority. --include-current and MCP
read_live_transcript(include_current: true) may return one provisional draft.
Drafts expire after three seconds and never enter files, event history, or logs.
[live_transcript] promote_on_stop = "process" preserves WAV and JSONL sources,
then creates a meeting. Use "preserve" to keep only those timestamped sources.
Use "off" for the legacy fixed slot. Live drafts use sealed local Whisper.
Apple Speech and Parakeet preferences currently resolve to Whisper without
writing named plaintext audio. See Apple Speech
and Parakeet. The desktop Live Mode toggle starts
the same stream.
Dictation mode
minutes dictate # Speak → text appears as you talk
minutes dictate --stdout # Output to stdout instead of clipboard
Text streams every two seconds and accumulates across pauses. When dictation
ends, Minutes writes the combined text to the clipboard and daily note.
Set [dictation] accumulate = false for per-pause output. Dictation uses sealed
local Whisper. Retained [dictation] backend = "apple-speech" and "parakeet"
settings currently resolve to Whisper. Linux uses wl-clipboard on Wayland or
xclip / xsel on X11. X11 auto-paste requires xdotool.
Command palette (desktop app)
Press ⌘⇧K on macOS to open commands for recording, notes, meetings, search,
and rename. Available commands follow current backend state. Recent commands
retain their payload, including Search transcripts: pricing.
The shortcut defaults on and triggers one first-launch notice. Disable it with
[palette] shortcut_enabled = false in $XDG_CONFIG_HOME/minutes/config.toml
or ~/.config/minutes/config.toml. Settings also offers ⌘⇧O and ⌘⇧U.
Templates (RFC 0001, Phase 1)
minutes template list # Bundled + project + user templates
minutes template show standup # Inspect a template
minutes record --template standup # Apply when recording
minutes process voice-memo.m4a --template voice-memo
Templates guide extraction of KEY POINTS, DECISIONS, ACTION ITEMS,
OPEN QUESTIONS, COMMITMENTS, and PARTICIPANTS. Bundled templates are
meeting, standup, 1-on-1, and voice-memo. Overrides load from
.minutes/templates/ and ~/.minutes/templates/. See RFC 0001.
Try it without a mic
minutes demo --full # Seed 5 sample meetings (Snow Crash theme)
minutes demo --query # Cross-meeting intelligence demo
minutes demo --clean # Remove sample meetings
The interactive demo seeds interconnected meetings, then lets you pick a thread to explore. Two storylines, five meetings, zero setup.
System diagnostics
minutes health # Check model, mic, calendar, disk
minutes demo # Run a pipeline test (bundled audio, no mic)