Summarization and templates
How summarization works
MeetingDebrief generates summaries using a local language model. The model reads your transcript and produces a structured summary based on the selected template. By default, all processing happens on your device. You can also run summaries on your own AI server.
Generating a summary
After a session has been transcribed, click the summarize button and select a template. If auto-summarize is enabled (Summarize when transcript is ready in Settings → AI & Summaries), a summary is generated automatically after transcription completes using your default template.
You can generate multiple summaries per session using different templates. Summaries run in the background with live progress and a Cancel button, so the app stays usable while they generate.
Summaries and chat are told the date of the meeting, so relative references such as "next quarter", "end of the month", or "by Friday" resolve against the day you actually spoke.
Your notes go to summaries as additional context, which helps with what mattered most to you and with names the transcript garbles.
Editing a summary
Click the pencil on any summary to edit it in place, then click Save. Your edits are saved, picked up by search, and written to the Markdown mirror.
Out-of-date summaries
Every summary records the version of the transcript it was written from. If you edit the transcript or re-transcribe the meeting, existing summaries are flagged Transcript changed, regenerate summary so you know to generate a fresh one. Naming a speaker also marks that meeting's summary as out of date.
Built-in templates
MeetingDebrief includes several built-in templates:
- Action Items: action items with owners and deadlines.
- Prospecting: a summary of a sales or prospecting meeting.
- Project Discussion: a summary of a project or technical meeting.
- General: a general-purpose meeting summary.
Custom templates
Create your own templates to match your workflow. Go to Settings → Templates. Click Add template to create a new one.
A template is a prompt that instructs the language model how to summarize the transcript. Use the {transcript} placeholder in your prompt to indicate where the transcript content should be inserted. Use {notes} to place your notes; without it, they are added automatically.
Example custom template:
Summarize the following meeting transcript into a list of key decisions and next steps. Focus on deadlines and assigned owners. {transcript}
Summary language
By default, MeetingDebrief generates summaries in the language detected from the transcript. You can override this by setting a specific Summary language in Settings → AI & Summaries. When set, all summaries are generated in the chosen language regardless of what language was spoken. Session titles follow the language of the summary.
GPU-accelerated summarization
On Windows with an NVIDIA CUDA-compatible GPU, summarization can use GPU acceleration for faster results. This is enabled automatically when the CUDA worker is installed. See the transcription page for details on GPU setup.
Editing and deleting templates
In Settings → Templates, click a template to edit its name or prompt. Click the delete button to remove a custom template. Built-in templates cannot be deleted.