MY 4 FAVORITE VEHICLES OF 2023
Oasis is an AI dictation app that has changed the way I brainstorm. It’s now my favorite tool for thinking out loud and turning loose ideas into drafts and outlines.
How it works: Oasis records, transcribes and summarizes my voice notes. It also turns them into drafts, drafts, scripts or social posts. I use the excellent built-in commands or add custom instructions to convert my audio input to the format I need. I use it to create lesson plans, outline newsletter posts, journal, make lists of ideas, and plan speeches.
Snipd has become my favorite podcast player this year. It allows me to record and share highlights of a great episode by simply tapping my AirPods.
How it works: Drops clips I highlight into my digital notebook (works with Notion, Readwise, or other notes apps); sends me an episode summary; and it gives me an AI preview of any podcast so I can prioritize my playlist.
Bloks is an AI note-taking tool for summarizing meetings. Using it as a backup gives me the freedom to focus on listening and thinking.
How it works: Bloks can record anything; a live, face-to-face meeting, Zoom call, or dictation. Unlike other AI meeting summarizers, you don’t need to attend the meeting as it records from your own computer. You can then ask Bloks to convert the meeting summary into an email draft, blog post, or anything else. I also asked him to translate the important moments of the meeting. It does not record audio or video, only text transcription and summary.
Coda is the underappreciated app of the year. See its new AI capabilities in the AI gallery. Recommended ways to explore it:
Try a free AI-powered template to summarize your meeting notes or help with project, trip, or meal planning.
Set up a social sharing doc that can instantly create vertical visuals for any article draft you paste in.
Create your own book list. I made a book collection page last week with the 70+ titles my book group has read. All I had to do was paste book titles into a table. The AI magically + accurately added authors, description, and covers.