Transcribe Slack huddles
Yes, Aside works with Slack huddles on Mac and Windows. It records your microphone and the sound your computer plays, so it transcribes any huddle you’re in without adding anything to Slack.
Does Aside work with Slack huddles?
Yes, any huddle you can hear
Huddles are quick, often unplanned calls, and they rarely get notes. Aside fixes that without touching Slack. It records your microphone and the sound your computer plays, so it works in the Slack desktop app and in Slack in your browser, in channels and in direct messages.
There’s no Slack app to install, no workspace admin to ask, and no bot added to the huddle. It works the same in huddles with people from other companies.
What you get
A transcript made on your computer by an on-device speech model, for English and 24 European languages (add another language and every call is transcribed online, as on computers too slow to keep up, but for notes-only calls on the free plan). The recording stays on your computer with playback of both sides. Notes you type during the huddle sit in the transcript where you wrote them. After a guided call (2 a week on Free, every call on the paid plan), a summary, next steps and a follow-up email to copy are written when you stop.
How to transcribe a huddle with Aside
On a Mac
1. Install Aside
Download Aside for Mac (Apple silicon, macOS 14.2 or later). It lives in the menu bar. The first time, it downloads its speech model once, about 570 MB, or 720 MB with other European languages. Add a language the on-device model doesn’t know and every call is transcribed online, so only a small model for telling speakers apart downloads. On the free plan, in 13 of those languages, a 990 MB model downloads too, for the calls Aside doesn’t guide.
2. Allow the microphone and Mac audio
On first run, macOS asks to let Aside use your microphone and the sound your computer plays. Allow both. You do this once, not for each call or each app.
3. Record the call
Start or join the huddle in Slack. Start recording from the menu bar or press ⌃⌥P. When the call ends, press ⌃⌥X. The transcript has your notes in place, and after a guided call (2 a week on Free, every call on the paid plan) the write-up starts when you stop.
On Windows
1. Install Aside
Get Aside from the Microsoft Store (Windows 10 version 2004 or later, or Windows 11), then click Open. It lives in the system tray, and the Store keeps it up to date. The first time, it downloads its speech model once, about 920 MB, or 990 MB with other European languages. Add a language the on-device model doesn’t know and every call is transcribed online, so only a small model for telling speakers apart downloads. On the free plan, in 13 of those languages, a 990 MB model downloads too, for the calls Aside doesn’t guide.
2. Check the microphone
Aside hears the sound your PC plays with no prompt. If Windows blocks the microphone, turn it on in Settings > Privacy & security > Microphone. You do this once, not for each call or each app.
3. Record the call
Start or join the huddle in Slack. Start recording from the system tray or press CtrlAltP. When the call ends, press CtrlAltX. The transcript has your notes in place, and after a guided call (2 a week on Free, every call on the paid plan) the write-up starts when you stop.
Huddles often start without warning. The shortcut works from any app, so ⌃⌥P or CtrlAltP starts a recording without leaving Slack.
Slack’s AI huddle notes and Aside
Slack has AI notes for huddles on paid plans. They’re built for a team that wants shared notes in the channel.
Use Slack’s AI notes if…
- Your workspace is on a paid Slack plan that includes them.
- You want the notes in a canvas in the huddle thread, for everyone in that channel or DM.
- Your huddles are with people inside your workspace.
Use Aside if…
- Your huddle includes people from outside your company or guests. Slack’s AI notes can’t be used there.
- You want English and 24 European languages transcribed on your computer, and the recording kept there.
- You want the notes for yourself rather than posted to the channel.
- You also take calls in Zoom, Meet, Teams or FaceTime.
Where Aside differs
Private by default
Slack’s AI notes go into a canvas that anyone in the channel or DM can open, and Slack tells everyone in the huddle when notes start. Aside’s transcript stays with you. When you’re signed in, meeting text syncs to your Aside account so AI apps you connect can read it. The recording stays on your computer.
No Slack integration
Aside doesn’t post to Slack. If your team wants the summary in a channel, copy it in. If you want answers across many huddles, connect an AI app like Claude, which can read your meetings. See Aside with Claude.
Guidance in a huddle
Live guidance works in a huddle like any call: set a goal or two and Aside shows when you’ve covered them. It’s most useful for planned calls, like a customer interview over Slack Connect. See features.
Before you record
Sharing your screen in a huddle
Aside’s pill, cards and note field are hidden from screen sharing, even when you share your whole screen. Only you see them.
Tell people
A huddle feels informal, but recording laws still apply, and many require everyone’s consent. A line in the huddle thread is an easy way to say so.
Questions
Can Aside transcribe a Slack huddle?
Yes. Aside records your microphone and the sound your computer plays, so it transcribes any huddle in the Slack desktop app or in a browser.
Does Aside work in huddles with people outside my company?
Yes. Aside doesn’t connect to Slack, so it works in Slack Connect channels and with guests. Tell people you’re recording.
Does Aside post notes to Slack?
No. Aside has no Slack integration. Copy the summary into Slack, or connect an AI app like Claude to read your meetings.
Do I need a paid Slack plan to use Aside?
No. Aside doesn’t depend on your Slack plan. Recording and transcripts are free in Aside; Aside’s Free plan guides and writes up 2 calls a week, and the paid plan every call. On Free, only guided calls are transcribed online; in 13 of the online-only languages, the rest are transcribed on your computer after the call.
Last checked 15 Oct 2026. Products change, so check Slack’s own pages before you decide.
Sources
Facts about Slack come from its own help pages, read on 15 Oct 2026.