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How Gorp compares.

Gorp is a meeting notepad for your Mac that keeps the recording, so you can check what the AI wrote against what was said. I make it, and I’d rather you pick the right app than the wrong one, so this page says where Gorp is behind as plainly as where it’s ahead.

As of October 2026. Granola facts checked October 5, 2026; Otter, Fathom, MacWhisper and Apple facts checked September 27, 2026. Gorp 0.1.16 is an early preview. Products and prices change, so check each vendor’s page before deciding. Plain product names only; no endorsement by or affiliation with any vendor.

If you use Granola

Granola is the closest app to Gorp. You take notes the same way. The difference is that Gorp keeps the recording.

What feels the same

You type rough notes during the call and get enhanced notes afterwards that merge them with the transcript. Templates come built in, and you can write your own.
No bot joins. Gorp records your microphone and your Mac’s call audio.
Your calendar drives the day. Connect Google, Microsoft or the Mac’s Calendar app and start notes from today’s meetings. Gorp nudges you when a call starts in Zoom, Teams, FaceTime, Slack huddles or Webex, or in a browser when a calendar meeting is due, and offers to stop and process once the scheduled time has passed and the call has gone quiet. Like Granola, it never starts recording without your click.¹
A brief before the meeting, built from your earlier meetings with the same people: what was decided, what’s still open.
Pause and resume during a call, folders and tags, and a live transcript on macOS 26.
Ask (⌘K) works across all your meetings, much like Granola’s chat, and saved actions such as Weekly recap and Follow-up checklist play the part of Recipes.²⁰

What’s different

The audio is kept. When the summary says “$312M” and you remember “$312K”, click the line and listen. Granola doesn’t save audio, so there is nothing to replay.¹
Each AI statement starts unverified. Play its passage, then confirm or flag it before you forward it. Quotes whose wording isn’t in the transcript are flagged.
The AI can stay on your Mac. Transcription with Parakeet or Apple Speech, and writing with Gorp’s built-in writer, Apple Intelligence or Ollama. Granola sends audio to cloud transcription providers.² Or use the Claude or ChatGPT subscription you already pay for, through the Claude Code or Codex app, or your own API key.
No account and no history limit. The library is a folder on your Mac, and a meeting from last spring opens like one from this morning. Granola’s free plan keeps 30 days of history.³ Gorp has no server, so it can’t train on your meetings; Granola may use anonymized data to improve its service unless you opt out.²¹
Old recordings and ordinary files. Import Voice Memos, Zoom recordings, Plaud files and phone calls; Granola only transcribes live meetings.¹ Export Markdown, PDF, Word, SRT and VTT subtitles, or a bundle with the audio.
Several people in one room. Granola can’t tell apart people sharing one device.²² In Gorp, choose Another device and run Find speakers afterwards; it proposes voice groups for you to name. It’s early, so treat it as a first pass you review.
Consent tools. Copy a disclosure into the call chat, keep a consent note, and if someone objects, remove their side’s track.

One caveat today: on Macs without Apple Intelligence, choose the built-in private writer during setup; if you add an OpenAI key, notes go to OpenAI unless you change the writer.

Where Granola is ahead today

Devices. Granola runs on Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android and Apple Watch.^5,20 Gorp is Mac only (Apple silicon, macOS 15 or later). iPhone and Apple Watch recorders are coming, and a Windows client is in active development.
Teams. Share links with viewer or collaborator roles, and shared folders even on the free plan.^6,3 Gorp shares by exported files.
Integrations. Slack on every plan; Notion, Zapier, HubSpot, Attio and Affinity on Business; Salesforce on Enterprise; an API from Business up.³ Gorp has Shortcuts actions, Add to Reminders, files and a local MCP server, and no hosted API.
Speaker names. Granola labels speakers with display names from Meet, Zoom and Teams.²² In Gorp you name voices yourself.
Languages. Granola lists 32.²⁰ Gorp’s languages depend on the speech engine you pick, and I don’t publish a list yet.
Setup. Granola works after you sign in. Gorp takes a few minutes: pick models or connect a subscription, then run an audio check.
Maturity. Gorp is an early preview from a very small company, and its accuracy on real calls hasn’t been measured at scale.

If your team lives in shared folders, works on Windows laptops or depends on the HubSpot sync, Granola is the better fit today, and I’d tell you to stay.

Moving over

In Granola, go to Settings → Profile → Generate CSV. In Gorp, choose Import Granola notes… and pick the file. Gorp previews the notes, summaries and transcripts before importing, and skips notes it already has. Granola never kept the audio, so imported notes can’t be played back and stay unverified. Your next meeting in Gorp keeps its recording.

You can run both for a week or two: Gorp doesn’t join the call, so it won’t get in Granola’s way.

Otter, Fathom, MacWhisper and Apple Notes

If you use Otter

What feels the same: both keep the audio with playback synced to the text, show a live transcript and import recordings.^8,9,7

What’s different: Gorp never sends a notetaker into the call, needs no account, and lets you run the AI on your Mac or through your own subscription. Each statement can be checked against the audio.

Where Otter is ahead: Shared Channels for teams, iPhone, Android and web apps, and Salesforce and HubSpot on Pro.^9,10,7

Moving over: Otter exports mp3 audio even on the free plan.⁷ Import those files into Gorp and they’re transcribed again on your Mac.

If you use Fathom

What feels the same: bot-free recording from the desktop app, and you can keep audio and make clips.^11,14

What’s different: Gorp imports recordings you already have, where Fathom works on live Zoom, Meet and Teams calls only.¹³ Your meetings stay in a folder on the Mac rather than a cloud account.

Where Fathom is ahead: it records on Windows, has team plans with shared search and playlists, and offers Slack and CRM sync, an API and MCP from Premium.^12,14

Moving over: there’s no direct import from Fathom. If you have the audio or video files, Gorp imports them.

If you use MacWhisper

What feels the same: both run locally on your Mac, record calls without a bot, import audio and video files and export subtitles and documents.¹⁷

What’s different: Gorp is built around meetings: calendar nudges, rough notes merged into enhanced notes, statements you confirm against the audio, and consent tools.

Where MacWhisper is ahead: a one-time Pro price, automatic speaker recognition, and uploads to Notion, Zapier or a webhook.¹⁷

Moving over: both work with plain audio files, so import the recordings you want into Gorp.

If you use Apple Notes

Notes on a Mac with Apple silicon can record with a live transcript, and you can click text to hear it.¹⁸ The Phone app on a Mac can record calls into Notes, and both people hear a notice.¹⁹ Both are free and built in, and for a quick call they may be all you need.

Gorp adds call audio from Zoom and Teams as its own track, enhanced notes, statements you can confirm, and Ask across every meeting. It imports Voice Memos directly.

Six things Gorp does on purpose.

Available in the current download
Opt-in shipped, but you turn it on or set it up
Planned not in the public download

Available

It keeps the tape.

Recordings stay in your library on your Mac by default. Click a line in the notes or a transcript passage to hear it, or export a short clip. Optional retention rules can delete old audio for you.

Why it matters: when a summary sounds wrong, you can hear what was actually said.

Available

Notes you can check.

Every AI-written statement starts as unverified. Play its passage, then confirm it or flag it. Quotes whose wording isn’t in the transcript are flagged, and Ask (⌘K) across meetings shows confirmed statements first.

Why it matters: before you forward a decision, you’ve heard someone say it.

Available Opt-in

You choose where the AI runs.

On this Mac with Parakeet, Apple Speech, Gorp’s built-in writer, Apple Intelligence (macOS 26) or Ollama. Or with your own OpenAI, Anthropic, Gemini or Groq key, or your Claude or ChatGPT subscription through the Claude Code or Codex app.

Why it matters: private meetings can stay on the Mac; others can use the model you already pay for.

Available

No bot, no account, no Gorp server.

Gorp records your microphone and your Mac’s call audio as separate tracks, so nothing joins the call. There is no sign-up. Meetings stay on your Mac unless you choose an outside AI provider.

On Macs without Apple Intelligence, choose the built-in private writer during setup; if you add an OpenAI key, notes go to OpenAI unless you change the writer.

Why it matters: fewer places your conversations live, and nothing to cancel later.

Available

It imports old recordings and exports ordinary files.

Import audio or video files, Voice Memos, Zoom local recordings, Plaud exports and call recordings, or watch a folder. Export Obsidian-ready Markdown, PDF, Word, SRT and VTT subtitles, portable .gorp bundles with the audio, and checked library backups. Send action items to Reminders, or use Gorp’s actions in Shortcuts.

Why it matters: your notes aren’t locked in, and old recordings get the same treatment.

Available

Consent built in.

Copy a disclosure message into the call chat, keep a consent note for each meeting, and mark the moment someone agreed. If someone objects, remove their side’s track or discard the recording.

Why it matters: recording laws vary, and separate tracks make “please don’t record me” easy to honor.

Gorp and four alternatives, side by side

I chose the apps Mac users most often weigh against Gorp: Granola (the closest), Otter and Fathom (popular cloud notetakers) and MacWhisper (a local Mac transcriber). Numbers link to the vendor page each statement comes from. A dash means I couldn’t confirm it from the vendor’s own pages, not that the feature is missing.

Feature comparison as of October 2026. Granola checked October 5; the others September 27.
Feature	Gorp	Granola	Otter	Fathom	MacWhisper
Bot joins the call?	No. Mic and call audio are recorded on your Mac as separate tracks. Available	No; uses your computer’s audio.⁵	Your choice: a notetaker that joins, or bot-free recording in the Mac or Windows app.⁹	Your choice: a bot, or bot-free Capture Now in the desktop app.¹¹	No; records Zoom, Teams, Webex and others without a bot.¹⁷
Keeps the audio	Yes, on your Mac, by default. Click a note line or passage to hear it; export clips. Available	No; audio and video aren’t saved.¹	Yes; playback with synced audio and text.⁸	Per meeting: transcript only, audio, or audio and video; clips on every plan.^11,14	—
Where the AI runs	Your choice: on this Mac, your own API key, or your Claude or ChatGPT subscription. Available Opt-in	Cloud transcription and AI providers such as Deepgram, AssemblyAI, OpenAI and Anthropic. Anonymized data may be used to improve the service unless you opt out; Enterprise is opted out by default.^2,21	—	—	Local models on your Mac, or your own API keys for OpenAI, Anthropic, Groq, Google and others; Ollama and LM Studio.¹⁷
Account and storage	No account. The library is a folder on your Mac; no Gorp server stores meetings. Available	Google, Microsoft or SSO sign-in; notes stored in a US-hosted AWS cloud.^4,2	—	—	Processes on your Mac with local models.¹⁷
Import recordings	Yes: files, Voice Memos, Zoom local recordings, Plaud, call recordings, a watched folder. Import Granola notes from CSV. Available	No.¹	Yes: 3 lifetime imports free, 10 a month on Pro, unlimited on Business.⁷	No; live Zoom, Meet and Teams calls only.¹³	Yes: mp3, wav, m4a, ogg, opus, mov, mp4 and links.¹⁷
Export and connections	Obsidian-ready Markdown, PDF, Word, SRT and VTT, `.gorp` bundles with audio, backups; Add to Reminders, Shortcuts actions, and a local MCP server for assistants, read-only by default. Available Opt-in	Copy as Markdown. Slack on every plan; Notion, Zapier, HubSpot, Attio and Affinity on Business; Salesforce on Enterprise. MCP on every plan (free: personal notes from the last 30 days); API on Business and Enterprise.^6,3	mp3 and txt free; pdf, docx and srt on Pro; Salesforce, HubSpot and Zapier on Pro.⁷	Slack and CRM sync; public API and MCP from Premium.¹⁴	srt, vtt, txt, md, pdf, html, docx; uploads to Notion, Obsidian, Zapier or a webhook.¹⁷
Live transcript	Yes on macOS 26, on-device; the saved recording is transcribed again afterward. Available	Yes, on Mac and Windows.²	Yes.⁹	A live summary in bot-free mode; with the bot, the transcript arrives after the meeting.¹⁶	—
Speaker labels	Mic and system audio stay separate. A microphone can hear several people; Find speakers groups probable voices after the call for you to review and name. Optional live guesses on macOS 26 are off by default. No voiceprints are kept. Available	Participant names on Meet, Zoom and Teams; otherwise “Me” and “Them”. Can’t tell apart several people sharing one device.^1,22	Speaker tags on every plan.⁷	—	Automatic speaker recognition.¹⁷
Pause and resume	Yes. Pause during a call and resume in a new segment; the transcript shows the gap. Available	Stop, then pick transcription back up on the same note. Stops by itself when the call ends, after 15 quiet minutes or when the computer sleeps.¹	—	—	—
Before the meeting	Google, Microsoft or Mac Calendar; a nudge when a call starts in Zoom, Teams, FaceTime, Slack or Webex, or in a browser when a calendar meeting is due; a brief from earlier meetings with the same people, built on your Mac. Available	A notification to start notes; Briefs on who you’re meeting and what you discussed last time.^1,20	—	—	—
Ask across meetings	Ask (⌘K) across the library, confirmed statements first; saved actions such as Weekly recap. Available	AI chat across meetings on every plan; Recipes.^3,20	—	—	—
Folders	Folders and tags in your local library. Available	Shared folders, including the free plan.³	—	—	—
Languages	Set per meeting; the list depends on the speech engine you choose. I don’t publish a list yet. Available	32 languages.²⁰	—	—	—
Model training	Gorp has no server and trains nothing. An outside AI provider you choose follows its own terms. Available	May use anonymized data to improve the service by default; opt out in Settings. Enterprise is opted out by default.²¹	—	—	—
Note templates	Presets plus your own, with an outline and writing guidance. Preview rewrites before accepting; save recurring questions across meetings. Available	Customized templates, including the free plan.³	Standard free; advanced on Pro; custom on Enterprise.⁷	Advanced templates from Premium.¹⁴	—
Team sharing	Not yet; share exported files. Encrypted share links are planned. Planned	Share links with viewer or collaborator roles; shared folders on the free plan.^6,3	Shared Channels by team, project or topic.⁹	Team plans add shared search, playlists and collaboration.¹⁴	—
Devices	Apple silicon Mac (macOS 15 or later). iPhone and Apple Watch recorders are coming; a Windows client is in active development. Available Planned	Mac, Windows, iPhone, Android and Apple Watch.^5,20	Mac and Windows apps; iOS, Android and web.^10,8	Records on Mac and Windows; not mobile.¹²	Mac.¹⁷
Price	Free to download during the preview; pricing not yet set.	Free with 30 days of history; Business $14 and Enterprise $35 per user a month.³	Free (300 minutes a month); Pro $16.99 a month ($8.33 billed yearly); Business $30 ($19.99 yearly).⁷	Free with unlimited recordings; Premium $20 a month ($16 yearly); Team $19 and Business $34 per user ($15 and $25 yearly).¹⁴	Free version; Pro €64 once, with lifetime updates.¹⁷

Where others are ahead, and what I’m building

Where others are ahead today

Teams. Granola, Otter and Fathom have shared folders, channels or team plans. Gorp shares only by exported files.
Windows and phones. Granola runs on Windows, iOS and Android; Otter on iOS, Android and the web; Fathom records on Windows. Gorp’s public download is Mac only. iPhone and Apple Watch recorders are coming, and a Windows client is in active development.
Automatic speaker names. Granola labels speakers with participants’ display names on Meet, Zoom and Teams. Gorp separates voices when you ask and you name them.
Integrations. Others connect to Slack, Notion and CRMs. Gorp works through files, Shortcuts, Reminders and a local MCP server.
Live transcript on older macOS. Gorp’s needs macOS 26.
Maturity. Gorp is an early preview from a small independent company. Keep your own backups of recordings that matter.

What I’m building Planned

People directory: the names you give speakers, gathered into person pages. Names only, with no voiceprints.
End-to-end encrypted personal sync between your own devices, off unless you turn it on.
iPhone and Apple Watch apps for in-person conversations.
Encrypted share links for confirmed notes, with audio clips around each statement.

These aren’t in the public Mac download. Plans can change; release notes will say when each one ships.

Where the facts come from

Competitor statements come from each vendor’s own pages. Granola’s were checked on October 5, 2026; the others on September 27, 2026. Gorp statements describe Gorp 0.1.16, updated October 4, 2026. If something here is out of date, email support@gorpapp.com and I’ll fix it.

Granola, Transcription (no saved audio, no file import, speaker tags)
Granola, Security (providers, US-hosted AWS storage, real-time transcription)
Granola, Pricing
Granola, Signing in and connecting your calendar
Granola, home page (platforms, no bot)
Granola, Sharing notes
Otter, Pricing
Otter, Features
Otter, Meeting agent
Otter, Desktop app
Fathom, Bot-free recording help article
Fathom, Supported devices help article
Fathom, Uploaded calls help article
Fathom, Pricing
Fathom, speaker identification help article (no longer online as of October 5, 2026; the claim it supported was removed)
Fathom, Live summary help article
MacWhisper, home page
Apple, Record and transcribe audio in Notes on Mac
Apple, While on a call in Phone on Mac
Granola, Updates (32 languages, Apple Watch, Android, Briefs, Chat and Recipes)
Granola, Model training
Granola, Speaker attribution

Try it on a real call.

The preview is free to download, needs no account, and checks both audio tracks before your first meeting.

Download for Mac Getting started guide →