Session notes written on your Mac, not on a server
A cloud notetaker in a therapy session is a vendor listening to protected health information. Here is how to get the notes without any of it leaving your Mac.
Minutes needs macOS 26 on a Mac with Apple silicon. 7-day trial, no card.
Last updated: September 2026
Full disclosure: this page is published by the makers of Minutes. Nothing here is legal advice.
What a cloud notetaker is, in your terms
When an AI notetaker joins a telehealth session or uploads its audio, a company you do not employ is processing what your client said. Under HIPAA that company is a business associate, and you need a signed agreement with it before any session goes through. Many consumer notetakers will not sign one. Some will, on a higher plan. Either way the transcript then lives in their workspace, on their servers, under their retention policy.
None of that is a reason to avoid notes. It is a reason to know where the audio goes before you press record.
What changes when nothing leaves the Mac
Minutes records the session on your Mac, writes the transcript with Apple's speech model and the summary with the on-device Apple Intelligence model, and saves one Markdown file with the audio beside it in a folder you choose. Nothing is uploaded. No bot joins. There is no vendor processing the audio, so there is no business associate for the transcription step, because there is no business in it.
Minutes carries no certification and we sign no agreements, and no vendor ever touches the session. The safeguards for the Mac itself stay yours: FileVault on, a login password, access limited to you, and a backup you control. If your notes must live in a specific record system, paste the summary into it.
Consent and the recording in the room
Recording a session needs the client's consent, in most places in writing, and the rules differ by state and country. Minutes does not announce itself to the other side. Tell the client, record their answer, and keep it in the file. Minutes shows a recording indicator on your own Mac the whole time.
If you keep the note and not the audio, delete the .m4a next to it. Nothing else holds a copy.
What it writes
Minutes writes a summary, the decisions and the action items, with a Reminders button for anything either of you promised to do, ready to paste into your own note format. It needs macOS 26 or later on Apple Silicon with Apple Intelligence on.
| Joins the session | Audio uploaded | A vendor processes the audio | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minutes | $9.99 once | ✗No | ✗No | No |
| Otter.ai | Free 300 min, then $8.33+/user/mo | ✓Yes | ✓Yes | Yes, so an agreement is needed |
| Fireflies.ai | Free, or $10 to $39/seat/mo | ✓Yes | ✓Yes | Yes, so an agreement is needed |
| Granola | Free, or $14/user/mo | ✗No | ✓Yes | Yes, so an agreement is needed |
or buy Minutes, $9.99 once · Minutes needs macOS 26 on a Mac with Apple silicon
FAQ
Is Minutes HIPAA compliant?
HIPAA compliance belongs to a practice, not to a piece of software, and Minutes carries no certification. What it does is keep the audio, the transcript and the notes on your Mac, so no vendor processes them and there is no business associate for that step. The safeguards on the Mac itself are still yours.
Does a bot join my telehealth session?
No. Minutes records what your Mac already hears, your microphone and the call audio, as two channels. The other side sees nothing new in the participant list.
Do I still need the client's consent to record?
Yes. Recording rules differ by state and country and most require consent, often in writing. Minutes does not announce itself; you do.
Can I keep only the note and delete the audio?
Yes. Each session is one Markdown file with an .m4a beside it. Delete the audio and the note stays. Nothing else holds a copy.
Which Mac do I need?
macOS 26 or later on Apple Silicon, with Apple Intelligence turned on for summaries. Minutes is $9.99 once, with a 7-day trial and a 7-day refund.
Keep the meeting on your Mac
Most meeting notetakers either send a bot into your call or send your audio to a server. Minutes does neither: it transcribes both sides of the call on your Mac, writes the summary on device, and pulls out the promises people made with an Add button beside each one, all in plain Markdown in a folder you own. It is $9.99 once.
Buy Minutes, $9.99 Try free for 7 daysMinutes needs macOS 26 on a Mac with Apple silicon. Nothing is uploaded, ever, and the 7-day trial needs no card up front.
Keep reading: Best Mac meeting notes apps in 2026 · vs Otter.ai · vs Fathom · vs Fireflies.ai · vs tl;dv · vs Notion AI · vs Apple's built-in recording · Private, on-device notes · Notes without a bot · Local AI note takers · Record a call on a Mac · For lawyers · For sales calls · Minutes overview