Otter.ai excels as a dedicated transcription tool with strong cross-platform capabilities, working seamlessly across Zoom, Teams, and in-person meetings. Its real-time transcription, speaker identification, and AI-generated summaries make it particularly valuable for users who attend meetings across multiple platforms. However, transcripts can be verbose and lack structure, while accuracy issues persist with complex audio or speaker identification.

The tool offers a generous free tier and reasonable pricing tiers, making it accessible for individuals, small teams, and larger organizations. Its mobile apps and ability to transcribe uploaded audio files provide flexibility for various use cases beyond live meetings. Despite having integrations with platforms like HubSpot and Notion, the connections remain somewhat basic and don't fully bridge the gap between meeting insights and actionable workflow automation.

Zoom AI provides a streamlined experience for organizations already committed to the Zoom ecosystem, with AI features seamlessly built into the platform at no additional cost for paid subscribers. The tool generates instant summaries and action items while allowing participants to ask real-time questions during meetings. Its strength lies in simplicity and immediate availability for existing Zoom users, though this benefit only applies to virtual Zoom calls.

The platform's main limitation is its restriction to the Zoom ecosystem, making it unsuitable for organizations using multiple meeting platforms or conducting in-person meetings. While it offers multi-language support and basic automation features, its integration capabilities with external tools remain minimal, and users often find themselves trapped within Zoom's interface when trying to act on meeting insights or share information with broader business systems.

Comparison table

What users say about Otter.ai and Zoom AI

Users generally praise Otter.ai for its user-friendly design and accessibility, with reviewers noting that it offers an intuitive interface that is easy to navigate and use, even for non-tech-savvy users. The AI Meeting Assistant feature is highlighted as a standout capability that enhances the overall user experience. Overall, Otter.ai appears to be well-regarded for its straightforward approach to transcription and note-taking.

Zoom AI Companion receives more mixed feedback from users, with some questioning its practical utility in real-world scenarios. According to user discussions, there are concerns about whether people actually use Zoom AI summaries effectively, though users express interest in enhanced features like AI-powered queries across past meetings for better accountability. Comprehensive reviews acknowledge that while Zoom AI has useful features, there are notable pros and cons that users should consider when evaluating the platform.

Users frequently abandon Otter.ai due to accuracy and reliability issues that interfere with their core transcription needs. The platform struggles with complex audio situations, producing mistakes in both transcription quality and speaker identification. This becomes particularly problematic during important business meetings or interviews where accuracy is crucial for creating reliable records and summaries.

The overly verbose and unstructured nature of Otter.ai's transcripts creates significant usability challenges for users seeking efficient meeting documentation. Many find it difficult to quickly locate key takeaways from the lengthy, poorly organized output, which defeats the purpose of using an AI tool to save time. This structural problem makes the transcripts less valuable for users who need to reference important decisions or action items later.

Technical and administrative frustrations also drive users away from the platform. The AI assistant can create unwanted disruptions by sending spam calendar invites or joining meetings it shouldn't, requiring careful configuration to prevent these issues. Additionally, the limitations of the free version, such as the 40-minute cap on Zoom meeting transcriptions, create barriers for users who want to evaluate the service thoroughly before committing to a paid plan.

Users often switch away from Zoom AI due to its platform limitations and restricted functionality. The tool only works within Zoom meetings, making it completely useless for organizations that conduct meetings on other platforms like Microsoft Teams or Google Meet. This creates a significant constraint for businesses that use multiple communication platforms or need to capture audio from in-person meetings, as Zoom AI cannot independently capture audio outside of virtual Zoom calls.

The limited integration capabilities represent another major drawback that drives users to seek alternatives. Unlike dedicated meeting AI tools, Zoom AI offers few native integrations with popular productivity platforms and has no direct synchronization with tools like HubSpot or Notion. Users find themselves stuck within Zoom's ecosystem, unable to easily export or share AI-generated notes outside of the Zoom interface, which creates workflow inefficiencies for teams that rely on external project management or CRM systems.

Feature maturity issues also contribute to user dissatisfaction and eventual migration to other solutions. Many users report that Zoom AI's meeting management capabilities feel underdeveloped compared to dedicated tools, with limited control over which meetings to record or summarize. The integration with Zoom Chat remains basic, and users frequently encounter hiccups when trying to retrieve or share AI notes outside of the Zoom platform, making the overall experience feel incomplete compared to more specialized AI meeting agents.

Using Otter.ai

Does Otter.ai work for in-person meetings?

Yes, Otter.ai can transcribe live in-person conversations via its app.

Does Otter.ai require a meeting bot to join the meeting?

For virtual meetings, Otter.ai uses an assistant that can join meetings in real time on platforms like Zoom and Teams. However, for in-person meetings, it can transcribe directly via its app without needing a bot.

What do users say about the quality of Otter.ai transcriptions?

Users have mixed feedback on transcription quality. While many find it extremely easy to use for transcribing and note-taking, some report that accuracy can suffer with complex audio, noting mistakes in transcription or speaker identification. Additionally, some users find that transcripts can be overly verbose and lack structure, making it hard to quickly find key takeaways.

How does Otter.ai help users follow up on action items?

Otter.ai uses "OtterPilot" which auto-generates summaries, follow-up emails, and CRM updates to help with post-meeting tasks and action items.

Does Otter.ai integrate with software like Hubspot, Salesforce, or Linear?

Yes, Otter.ai integrates with various platforms including Zoom, Slack, HubSpot, and Notion via OtterPilot.

Using Zoom AI

Does Zoom AI work for in-person meetings?

No. Zoom AI only works for virtual Zoom calls and cannot independently capture in-person audio.

How does Zoom AI help users follow up on action items?

Zoom AI automatically generates meeting summaries and next-action items at the end of Zoom calls. The summaries and highlighted action items are generated almost instantly after the meeting, which users find handy for sharing recaps.

Does Zoom AI integrate with software like Hubspot, Salesforce, or Linear?

No. Zoom AI has limited integrations and stays within Zoom's ecosystem with few native integrations. There is no direct HubSpot or similar CRM sync available.

For users seeking alternatives to Otter.ai or alternatives to Zoom AI, there are several options available that might better suit specific needs. When evaluating the best meeting automation tool for your organization, consider factors like platform compatibility, integration capabilities, and pricing structure that align with your workflow requirements.

Another alternative: Circleback

Circleback provides best-in-class AI-powered meeting notes and automations. We support over 100 languages and automatic participant identification in both in-person and online meetings.

• Automatically-identified and assigned action items

• AI-enabled search across all meetings

• Automations with 100+ app integrations

• Industry-leading security with SOC 2 Type II, EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework, and HIPAA compliance

• Ability to capture both online and in-person meetings with desktop and mobile apps