Should you build your own tl;dv?
AI meeting recorder with transcripts, summaries, clips, and CRM sync
A DIY app can record, transcribe, summarize, and generate clips, but tl;dv's team library, CRM integrations, and meeting-bot reliability are real work.
ENOriginal research content in English. Original prompt preserved in English.
Build me a personal meeting recorder with clips to replace tl;dv. Requirements:
- A macOS menu bar app (or a rec start / rec stop CLI, pick the simpler to ship)
that records system audio + mic locally with ffmpeg. No bot joins the call.
- On stop: transcribe with whisper.cpp with timestamps, or the Whisper API if a key
is in .env.
- Send the transcript to an LLM (key in .env) for a 5-bullet summary and action
items; save everything to ~/Meetings/YYYY-MM-DD-<title>/ as notes.md, the
transcript, and the audio file.
- While recording, a global hotkey drops a highlight marker; afterwards each marker
becomes a clip, ffmpeg cutting 30 seconds either side into clips/.
- A local library page (Express on localhost:4700): list meetings, full-text search
across transcripts with SQLite FTS5, play recordings and clips inline.
- No accounts, no telemetry; nothing leaves my machine except optional API calls.
- Out of scope: a bot that auto-joins Zoom/Meet, CRM sync, and a shared team
library. This records what I can hear locally.
- README: mic + screen-recording permissions, whisper model download, and a
reminder that recording other people still requires their consent.The prompt opens pre-filled in your agent. Review it before running. · this prompt is generated from the build plan · improve it via PR
What would building your own look like?
Join/record meetings, generate transcript and summary, tag highlights, clip segments, and export notes.
What you will need
- meeting platform integration
- speech-to-text
- video storage
- LLM API
- hosted backend
They pay for repeatable team-wide capture and distribution, not because summaries are hard.
xmeeting bot upkeep
xteam/shared library
xCRM integrations
xadmin controls
xpolished clip sharing
How much does tl;dv cost?
- Monthly billing
- $18/mo$18/mo · per person
- Per year
- $216/yr$216/yr
- On a Brazilian card, with 3.5% IOF
- R$94.06/moR$1,129/yr
Saved to My list. You will see a notice on this site when the price changes.
You complete the purchase on tl;dv’s site. Vibe Radar does not handle payments.
| Plan | Monthly | Annual (per month) | What is included |
|---|---|---|---|
| free | $0/user | $0/user | Unlimited meeting recordings, transcripts, and storage; no retention clock. |
| pro | - | $18/user≈ $18 | Paid AI and workflow features above Free; exact current numeric feature caps were not exposed in crawlable public pricing text. |
| business | custom | - | Conversation intelligence, coaching, and revenue workflows; exact current numeric limits and public price were not reliably exposed. |
| enterprise | custom | - | Custom security, administration, and support; no public numeric price. |
Free tierUnlimited recordings, transcripts, and storage; numeric caps for advanced AI features were not exposed in the crawlable live pricing application.
Billing termsmonthly + annual; current monthly prices and Business annual price were not reliably exposed
Additional costsThe live pricing application is dynamic, and separate official 2026 tl;dv pages conflict on the Business annual figure; that field is intentionally null rather than choosing one.
verified 2026-08-14 · source ↗
Is it cheaper to build or buy tl;dv?
Adjust the numbers: hours to build, your hourly rate, running costs and the subscription price.
Over 24 months, subscribing is cheaper.
Starting hours estimated from the analysis (multi-day). Does not price what you give up (support, integrations, security).
Can I rebuild tl;dv?
Kinda. The core of tl;dv is buildable in a weekend with the prompt on this page, but there are real gaps: meeting bot upkeep, team/shared library. Read the honest list above before committing.
How much does tl;dv cost?
tl;dv costs about $18/mo (Pro, checked 10/20/2026), which is $216 per year.
What do I lose by replacing tl;dv?
Honestly: meeting bot upkeep; team/shared library; CRM integrations; admin controls; polished clip sharing. If any of those are load-bearing for you, keep paying.
Is there an open-source alternative to tl;dv?
Yes: whisper.cpp (Can power the transcription layer for a simpler local clone.). Using prior art is also vibecoding; the prompt is for when you want it exactly your way.