Frequently asked questions

Does my meeting audio leave my Mac?

In the default mode, never. Recording and transcription happen entirely on-device, and the audio is discarded after transcription. Notes are saved as Markdown files you own.

Are my transcripts used to train AI models?

No. We never train on your content. If you use the fully-local AI mode, your transcript text never reaches any third party at all.

Is the Meeting Copilot private?

Yes. The Meeting Copilot is a Mac-only assistant that helps you during a live call — it never speaks, joins or shows up in the meeting, and what it displays is only ever on your own screen. Its suggestions are built from your on-device transcript and whichever AI option you've set up, so you can even run it with a fully local model and have nothing leave your Mac. The one exception is screen awareness — see below.

Does screen awareness send my screen anywhere?

Only if you turn it on and only when you ask. The Meeting Copilot's screen awareness is off by default and never runs in the background. When it's on and you tap What's on screen?, Lalela takes a single snapshot of your screen and sends it — with that one question — to the cloud AI model you've chosen, for that one answer. If you'd rather nothing leaves your Mac, don't use screen awareness: the Copilot's other prompts work entirely from your on-device transcript.

Can I use Apple Intelligence on my Mac or iPhone?

Yes, if your device supports it. Lalela can use Apple's built-in, on-device AI in two optional places:

• Transcription — choose Apple Speech (on-device) as your speech engine in Settings → Transcription. It transcribes your meetings entirely on your device, with no model to download.
• Summaries — choose Apple Intelligence (on-device) as your summary model when you generate notes.

This works on:

• Mac — an Apple Silicon Mac running macOS 26 or later, with Apple Intelligence turned on.
• iPhone — an iPhone 15 Pro or later running iOS 26 or later, with Apple Intelligence turned on.

To turn Apple Intelligence on, open Settings → Apple Intelligence & Siri (or System Settings → Apple Intelligence & Siri on a Mac) and switch it on — a one-time, multi-GB on-device model downloads afterward. If the toggle doesn't appear, set Siri to a supported language (for example English) and try again.

Both run fully on-device — no account, no key, no quota, and nothing leaves your device. They're completely optional: Whisper stays the default transcription engine, and your local, free-allowance and bring-your-own-key AI options are all unchanged. If your device isn't eligible, these choices simply don't appear and nothing changes.

Do I need an account?

No. Recording, on-device transcription, speaker separation, local search and local AI all work without signing in. An account adds the free monthly AI allowance, sync to the web app, and sharing with your team.

Which meeting tools does Lalela work with?

Recording works with anything your Mac can hear: Zoom, Google Meet, Microsoft Teams, phone bridges through your speakers, and in-person conversations — no bot joins the call. You can also connect Fathom, Read AI, Granola, Microsoft Teams or Fireflies to sync in the meetings those tools captured, and import audio, video, DOCX, PDF and VTT files directly.

Where does my data live?

On your Mac, as a local database plus Markdown files per meeting. If you sign in and sync, your meetings are also stored encrypted in the cloud so the web app and your teammates (only the ones you share with) can see them. Optional voiceprints for speaker recognition are biometric data, so they stay on your Mac only — never synced — and you can delete them anytime.

Can I share just one meeting with someone?

Yes. Open the meeting and choose Share a private link — Lalela gives you a read-only web link anyone can open, no account needed. They see the summary and notes only, never the full transcript; you can add a password, set it to expire in 7 or 30 days, and revoke it at any time. No link exists until you create one. For ongoing teamwork, share a folder instead and give teammates viewer, editor or admin roles. See Share and organize.

How does Lalela know my people and companies?

It builds them automatically from the meetings already on your Mac. The People and Companies views group everyone you've met by person and organisation, showing when you first and last met and how often — no data entry, and nothing extra collected. It's just a tidier view of meetings you already have.

Can I unlock themes, and what are referrals?

Lalela has a few optional cosmetic themes, profile badges, and — on Mac — alternate app icons you can unlock: purely a look, never a paywall on any feature. You can earn them by inviting a colleague with your referral link, or by making a donation to GiveDirectly during early access. Everything Lalela does works the same whether or not you unlock any of them.

The alternate app icons re-colour Lalela's mark in your Dock while the app is open (the icon in Finder stays the classic one). Pick one under Settings → Rewards.

What does it cost?

Lalela is free to download during early access, with no caps on recording or on-device transcription. Signing in includes a free monthly AI allowance; heavy users can run a local model or bring their own key.

Can I manage the local AI models and free up space?

Yes. Local AI is optional — Lalela only downloads a model if you choose to run AI fully on-device. When you do, open Settings → Storage to see what's installed, delete a model you no longer need, or free the memory a loaded model is using without deleting it (Lalela also releases it on its own when it's been idle). Lalela's own download stays lean, and your meetings are saved as plain Markdown in a folder you can open any time.

How do I update Lalela?

Lalela keeps itself up to date. It quietly checks for new versions in the background and installs them the next time you open the app — every update is signed and verified first.

If you'd rather not wait, you can update on the spot: open Settings → Storage, find Software update, and click Check for updates. If a newer version is ready, click Update and restart — Lalela downloads it, installs it, and reopens on the new version, no need to quit yourself. If you're already on the latest version, it'll tell you so.

My recording stops when my Android phone's screen turns off

Lalela keeps recording with the screen off — it holds a microphone notification and keeps your phone awake for the whole meeting, so a locked screen is fine.

Some Android phones fight this anyway. Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO phones (HyperOS/MIUI) are the strictest: their battery saver can freeze apps a few seconds after the screen goes dark, which cuts a long recording short. If that happens to you, tell your phone to leave Lalela alone: open Settings → Apps → Lalela → Battery (or Settings → Battery → App battery saver → Lalela) and choose No restrictions (sometimes shown as "Don't optimise" or "Allow background activity"). One-time, and long screen-off recordings will run to the end.

Something else?

Ask us at hello@auxo.digital, or see the full FAQ at lalela.auxodigital.africa/faq.