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Zoom, Teams and the like are a fact of work life. Truth be told, we don’t always pay strict attention to everything everyone says from their little screen squares. That’s where AI can really help.

But first, a warning: any content an AI platform transcribes becomes part of its data set. This is why Bader Rutter disables this feature for all of our agency Zoom and Teams meetings. Still, it’s important to know what’s possible.

Take these five steps to use AI to transcribe a virtual meeting, then organize the contents into a bullet pointed summary. Sound good?

Let’s get started.

1. Pick an AI transcribing platform.

While Teams and Zoom both feature built-in AI functionality, you can also use a number of third-party platforms as well. For this example, we will use Otter.ai. Otter.ai has both a paid and free version; download it at www.otter.ai.

2. Set up an account.

Before you can use any platform, you need to set up an account and fine tune your settings. You will also want to connect Otter.ai to your Teams, Zoom, or Google Meet accounts for easy use. Otter has a “pilot” function that will monitor your meetings to listen and transcribe notes.

3. Review your file.

When your meeting is over, the transcription will be saved in your dashboard on the Otter.ai website. Here you can view and correct the transcription, highlight key tasks, view insights and takeaways, add comments, or set action items. You can also use the Otter chat feature to ask questions about the meeting. For example, you can chat @otter “what are the action items from this meeting?” The bot will scour the transcription and create a bulleted list of action items from the call.

4. Download and share the document.

Once you’ve reviewed the document and feel it is accurate, share the notes out as a post-call report to other meeting attendees.

5. Marvel at the beauty and efficiency.

Wasn’t that easy? And so fast! Platforms like Otter.ai, and its built-in equivalents in Teams or Zoom allow you to focus on the meeting first and let the technology take the notes. It’s fast, efficient and helpful, though with this, and any AI generated work, it’s your responsibility to review and edit the content for accuracy and to ensure that the content of your meeting is safe to make public.