Granola AI Review: The Meeting Notepad That Killed the Awkward Bot
Employees spend 57% of their workday in meetings (Microsoft Work Trend Index). That leaves two bad options: frantically scribble notes and miss half the conversation, or use an AI bot that joins the call and makes everyone uncomfortable.
Ever watched a room go quiet the moment "AI Notetaker has joined the meeting" pops up? It is like placing a tape recorder in the middle of a dinner party. Sure, it captures everything — but it kills the vibe.
Granola AI took a different approach: what if the AI was invisible?
What Granola Actually Does
Granola is an AI notepad that listens to meetings through a computer's audio — no bot joins the call. It transcribes the conversation, then blends any rough notes typed during the meeting with the full transcript to produce clean, organized summaries in seconds.
Think of it as a brilliant assistant behind a two-way mirror. They hear everything, nobody knows they are there, and after the meeting they hand back polished notes that capture what actually mattered.
Founded: 2023 by Chris Pedregal & Sam Stephenson (London) | Funding: $67M total ($43M Series B, May 2025) | Valuation: $250M | Customers: Brex, Vercel, Replit, PostHog, Intercom, Ramp, Linear
How It Works (30-Second Version)
- Download the app (Mac, Windows, or iPhone)
- Connect Google Calendar
- Join any meeting normally — Zoom, Meet, Teams, whatever
- Granola listens through the device (no bot, no notification)
- Type quick notes during the call if anything stands out
- Meeting ends → polished summary appears within seconds
That is it. No setup wizardry, no plugins, no awkward explanations to clients.
Because Granola is invisible, let participants know the meeting is being recorded. Transparency still matters.
Five Features Worth Knowing
Ghost Mode — The core differentiator. Captures audio from system audio, not by joining the call. Nobody sees it. Sales teams and consultants love this.
AI Chat Across Meetings — Ask questions spanning months of conversations. "What feature requests came up most in Q1?" Granola scans everything and surfaces patterns. Ctrl+F for every work conversation, but smarter.
Team Folders — Shared spaces organized by project, client, or meeting type. Notes can be shared with non-Granola users via a link — they can even chat with the AI about the content.
Recipes — Saved AI prompts (like templates) for post-meeting workflows. Pre-built for 1:1s, standups, sales calls. Build custom ones for any use case.
Integrations — Native connections to HubSpot, Slack, Notion, Attio, Affinity. Zapier integration opens 8,000+ additional apps. New MCP protocol for piping data into other AI tools.
Pricing
| Plan | Cost | Key Inclusions |
|---|---|---|
| Basic | Free | AI notes, limited history, AI chat, shared folders |
| Business | $14/user/mo | Unlimited notes & history, advanced AI models, full integrations |
| Enterprise | $35/user/mo | SSO, auto privacy opt-out, API access, priority support |
The sweet spot is Business at $14/month. Competitive with Fireflies ($19/mo) and Otter ($16.67/mo) — and none of those are bot-free.
Strengths vs. Limitations
| ✅ Gets Right | ❌ Falls Short |
|---|---|
| Bot-free, invisible design | No audio/video playback |
| Best-in-class AI summaries | Speaker ID inconsistent in group calls |
| Human + AI hybrid note blending | No Android app |
| Dead-simple, zero learning curve | Requires Google Workspace |
| Cross-meeting AI search | Privacy opt-out is manual (non-Enterprise) |
| Trusted by Brex, Replit, Vercel | Limited free tier history |
Ratings
| Category | Score |
|---|---|
| Ease of Use | 9/10 |
| Transcription Accuracy | 8/10 |
| AI Summary Quality | 9/10 |
| Integrations | 7/10 |
| Privacy & Security | 7.5/10 |
| Value for Money | 8/10 |
| OVERALL | 8/10 |
Privacy Quick-Read
Good: Audio processed locally. No audio/video stored. Transcripts encrypted (AWS). GDPR-compliant. SOC 2 Type 2 certified (July 2025).
Watch out: Data is used for model training by default. Free and Business users must manually opt out in settings. Only Enterprise gets automatic org-wide opt-out. If handling sensitive client conversations (legal, healthcare, finance), factor this in.
Who Is This For?
Use it if: Back-to-back meetings define the workday. Client-facing calls where bots feel awkward. Need searchable meeting history across weeks/months. Mac or Windows user wanting simplicity.
Skip it if: Audio playback is essential. Android-only. Need advanced analytics (talk ratios, sentiment). On Microsoft 365 without Google Calendar.
Bottom Line
The AI meeting space is packed. Most tools do some version of "record, transcribe, summarize." Granola stands out because it rethought the input — removing the bot solved the social friction everyone else treats as acceptable.
Is it perfect? No. Audio playback is missing, speaker ID needs work, and privacy defaults could be more transparent. But for turning messy meetings into clean, actionable notes without disrupting the room? Granola is the best in the business right now.
At $14/month, it is one of the highest-ROI productivity tools available. Try the free tier for a week of real meetings. There is probably no going back.
