Guide

Get started with Unidesk

From download to your first meeting notes, one short step at a time.

Get started

Install and sign in

From download to your workspace, with no password to remember.

  1. On a Mac with Apple Silicon, click “Download for macOS”.
  2. On Windows, click “Download for Windows”, then run the downloaded setup file.
  3. On a Mac, open the downloaded Unidesk disk image.
  4. Drag the Unidesk app onto the “Applications” folder.
  5. The Unidesk app is now in the Applications folder.
  1. On the “Sign in to Unidesk” screen, click the “Email” field.
  2. Type your email address, for example “you@company.com”.
  3. Click the “Continue with email” button.
  4. Unidesk emails you a code, and the “Enter your code” screen opens.
  5. If this email is new, this step also creates your account.
  1. Type the code from your email into the boxes, one digit per box.
  2. Click the “Verify and continue” button.
  3. The Meetings page opens, and you are signed in.
  4. Click “Use a different email” to change the address.
  5. “Resend in 60s” counts down, then “Resend code” appears for a new code.

Set up

Set up in a few steps

Pick what runs on your computer and grant what Unidesk needs.

  1. On the “Welcome to Unidesk” screen, read what the app does.
  2. Click “Get started”.
  3. The first step that is not yet finished opens.
  1. In the “On-device summaries” step, find the “Qwen3.5 4B” or “Gemma 4 E2B” model.
  2. Click “Download”; a progress bar shows the percentage and time left.
  3. When it shows “Downloaded”, click “Continue”.
  4. To skip the download, click “Skip for now”.
  5. You can download the model later in Settings → AI Configuration.
  1. In the “Permissions” step, click “Grant” next to “Microphone” (on Windows, “Open Settings”).
  2. On Mac, click “Grant” next to “Screen Recording”; System Settings opens.
  3. On Mac, click “Grant” next to “Accessibility (optional)”.
  4. Each granted row shows a check mark and “Granted”.
  5. Click “Continue”.
  1. In the “Voice typing, fully private” step, find the “Parakeet TDT 0.6B v2” row, selected by default.
  2. Click “Download” on that row; a progress bar fills, then the row shows “Downloaded”.
  3. When the row shows “Downloaded”, click “Enable dictation”.
  4. In any app, tap Right Shift twice (Right ⇧ on Mac) and start talking.
  5. Press Enter to finish; Unidesk types what you said into the app.
  1. The “You're ready” checklist shows a check mark for each item that is set up.
  2. An item that is not set up has a button, such as “Download”, “Grant” or “Set up”, to finish it.
  3. Click “Start using Unidesk”.
  4. The app opens on the “Dashboard” page, first in the left sidebar.

Meetings

Record, transcribe, summarise

Unidesk writes the notes while you stay in the conversation.

  1. Join a call in your meeting app; by default, a pill appears at the top centre of your screen.
  2. The pill is titled “Start AI Meeting Note”; click “Start transcribing” to begin.
  3. The pill turns into a recording bar with a waveform and a running timer.
  4. Click the red stop button, “Stop recording”, or press Esc while the pill has focus.
  5. The pill closes, and the meeting appears in Meetings.
  1. In the left sidebar, click “Meetings”, then click your meeting in the list.
  2. While it works, “Generating summary…” lists each step with a spinner.
  3. Each finished step, such as “Capturing key decisions”, shows a blue check mark.
  4. Grey placeholder lines show where the summary will appear until it is ready.
  5. When it finishes, the Summary tab shows the summary, key decisions and action items by priority.
  1. On a meeting page, click the “Transcript” tab.
  2. Click the search box, which reads “Search transcript”, and type a word.
  3. Matches are highlighted, and a counter such as “1/3” shows which one you are on.
  4. The current match is orange; the other matches are yellow.
  5. Click “Next match” or “Previous match” to move between the highlighted words.
  1. In the left sidebar, click “Meetings”, then find the “Meeting Insights” list.
  2. The list is grouped under “Today”, “Yesterday” and “Last 30 Days”.
  3. Click the search icon, then type in the box that reads “Search meetings...”.
  4. Only meetings whose title contains the typed text stay in the list.
  5. Click the sort icon, then pick an order; the list starts on “Created Time (newest)”.

Dictation

Talk instead of typing

Speak into any app. Speech recognition runs on your computer.

  1. In any app where you type, such as an email or a document, click where the text goes.
  2. Tap Right Shift twice (Right ⇧ on Mac).
  3. The pill at the bottom centre of the screen shows “Listening…”.
  4. Speak. Your words appear in the pill as you talk.
  1. While you are dictating, press Enter (Return on Mac).
  2. The pill shows a spinner while it transcribes, then a check mark.
  3. Your text appears where the cursor is.
  4. To cancel without typing, press Esc.
  1. In any app, select the text you want to change.
  2. Tap Right Option twice (Right Alt on Windows).
  3. Say how to change it, for example “Make it shorter and more polite.”
  4. The pill shows your instruction, then a spinner while the text is rewritten.
  5. When done, the pill shows a check mark and your selected text is replaced.
  1. Tap Right Ctrl twice (Right ⌃ on Mac).
  2. Say a command, such as “Open Music”.
  3. The pill shows the action, such as “Open Music”, and “Esc to cancel”.
  4. After a short pause the app opens. Press Esc before then to cancel.
  5. A link asks first: click the check mark to open it, or the X to reject it.
  1. In the left sidebar, click Dictation.
  2. The Dictation page lists your latest dictations on this computer, newest first.
  3. Click “Copy” next to a dictation. A “Copied” message appears.
  4. Click “Export ZIP” at the top to save your history as a ZIP file.

Notes

Write fast with slash commands

Headings, lists, tables and diagrams without leaving the keyboard.

  1. In the left sidebar, click Notes.
  2. Click the + icon beside the Notes heading.
  3. A new note named “Untitled” opens at the top of the list.
  4. Its title is ready to rename, so type a name and press Enter.
  5. Click in the editor and type. Changes save as you type.
  1. In an open note, click in the editor and type /.
  2. A menu opens with blocks such as “Heading 1”, “Bullet List” and “Code Block”.
  3. Press Down Arrow to move the highlight, then Enter to insert it.
  4. Choosing “Heading 1” inserts a large heading where the cursor is.
  1. In an open note, type / and choose “Task List” from the menu.
  2. Type your action item after the empty checkbox.
  3. Click the checkbox to mark the item done.
  4. On a new line, type / and choose “Table”.
  5. A 3 by 3 table appears, with its top row as a header.
  1. In an open note, type / and choose “Mermaid Diagram”.
  2. A code block labelled “Mermaid” opens.
  3. In the code block, type graph LR on one line and Draft --> Review --> Publish on the next.
  4. A preview appears above the code, or an error if the syntax is invalid.
  1. In the editor, type a colon, then a word such as thu.
  2. A list of up to eight emoji opens, narrowing as you type.
  3. Click an emoji in the list, or press Enter on the highlighted one, to insert it.
  4. The word thu shows “thumbs up” and “thumbs down”.
  1. In the top right of the note, click “Export”.
  2. Choose “Markdown (.md)” or “Plain Text (.txt)”.
  3. A save dialog opens, with a file name based on the note title.

Whiteboards

Sketch it out

Draw with number keys, or turn Mermaid text into a diagram.

  1. In the left sidebar, click “Whiteboards”.
  2. If you have no whiteboards, click “New Whiteboard” in the middle of the screen.
  3. If you already have whiteboards, click the + button beside the “Whiteboards” heading.
  4. A blank board named “Untitled” opens at the top of the “Whiteboards” list.
  5. Click the title, type “Launch plan”, and press Enter to rename the board.
  1. On the open whiteboard, press 2 to choose the rectangle tool.
  2. Drag on the canvas from one corner to the opposite corner to draw a rectangle.
  3. Press 5 to choose the arrow tool, then drag to draw an arrow.
  4. Press 8 to choose the text tool, click the canvas, and type your text.
  5. Press 1 to return to the select tool.
  1. In the top bar of the whiteboard, click “Mermaid”.
  2. A panel opens on the right with a sample diagram in a text box.
  3. Replace the sample with your own Mermaid text, for example graph TD, then A --> B on the next line.
  4. Click “Render to Canvas”.
  5. Each node and link is drawn on the canvas, and anything already on the board stays.
  1. In the top bar of the whiteboard, click “Save”.
  2. Or press Cmd+S on Mac or Ctrl+S on Windows.
  3. While the board saves, the button shows a spinner.
  4. When the save finishes, the button briefly reads “Saved”, then “Save” again.
  5. The board does not save as you draw; it also saves when the app window is hidden.
  1. In the top bar of the whiteboard, click “Export”.
  2. In the menu, click “PNG image” or “SVG image”.
  3. A save dialog opens; choose a folder and a file name, then save.
  4. The menu also offers “.excalidraw file”, which saves the whole board, not a picture.

Tasks

Keep track of your tasks

Board, list or table, whichever fits the day.

  1. In the left sidebar, click the “Tasks” icon.
  2. Click “New Task” at the top right of the page.
  3. Type a name in “Title” and pick a “Due date”.
  4. Click “Create”. The task appears in the “To do” column.
  1. In the left sidebar, click the “Tasks” icon. The “Board” tab is selected by default.
  2. Drag a task card from the “To do” column with your mouse.
  3. Drop the card on the “In Progress” column.
  4. The card moves to “In Progress”, and the column counts update.
  1. In the left sidebar, click the “Tasks” icon, then click the “List” tab.
  2. Find the task under the “In Progress” heading.
  3. Click the circle on the left of the task, announced as “Mark done”.
  4. The task gets a tick, is struck through, and moves under “Done”.
  1. In the left sidebar, click the “Tasks” icon, then click the “Table” tab.
  2. Open the status filter showing “All statuses” and choose “Done”.
  3. Open the sort menu showing “Newest” and choose “Due soon”.
  4. Only “Done” tasks show, with the soonest due date first.

Tracker

Track time, bill clients

Start a timer, stop it, and the report builds itself.

  1. In the left sidebar, click “Settings”, then “Projects”.
  2. Click “Add Project” to open “New Project”.
  3. In the “Project name” field, type a name, and optionally fill in “Client (optional)”.
  4. Pick a “Color”, choose “₹ INR” or “$ USD” under “Currency”, and turn “Billable project” on or off.
  5. Enter a “Default hourly rate”, then click “Create”. The project appears in your list.
  1. In the left sidebar, click “Trackers”. The “Time Log” tab opens.
  2. Click the “What are you working on?” field and type a description.
  3. The “Start” button is enabled once the description has text.
  4. Click “Select project...”, then pick a project from the list.
  5. Click “Start”. The clock in the timer bar counts up, and “Stop” replaces “Start”.
  1. In the timer bar, click “Stop”.
  2. The timer stops, and the entry is saved to your Time Log.
  3. The entry appears under the “Today –” date heading in your Time Log.
  4. The “Today” and “Week total” figures go up.
  5. Before you click “Start”, click the “$” or “₹” button to toggle “Billable on” or “Billable off”.
  1. In the left sidebar, click “Trackers”, then the “Reports” tab.
  2. The top row shows “Total Hours”, “Billable Hours”, “Amount” and “Average Daily Hours”.
  3. “Amount” adds up billable entries at their hourly rates, shown in ₹ or $.
  4. “Duration by day” shows seven bars, Monday to Sunday, for the week of the range's end date.
  5. “Project distribution” shows each project's share as a donut chart, with percentages listed below.
  1. On the “Reports” tab, click “Export XLSX” to save an Excel spreadsheet.
  2. Or click “Export PDF” to save a PDF file.
  3. A dialog shows “Saved to:” and the file path, in your Downloads folder.
  4. The file covers the date range selected on the Reports tab.

Settings

Make Unidesk yours

Where AI runs, your shortcuts, what gets recorded, and your account.

  1. In the left sidebar, click “Settings”, then click “AI Configuration”.
  2. Next to “Meeting transcription” or “Meeting summary”, click “Local” or “Cloud”.
  3. Local keeps your audio and transcripts on this computer and never falls back to the cloud.
  4. On a cloud plan, “Cloud hours this month” shows the hours used, the hours left and the reset date.
  5. To switch speech or summary models, click “Use” on another downloaded model.
  1. In Settings → AI Configuration, scroll to “Dictation”.
  2. Click “Dictation hotkey”, “Write Mode hotkey” or “Command Mode hotkey”.
  3. Tap one modifier key twice, or press a shortcut that includes a modifier.
  4. The field shows the new hotkey, and a message confirms it.
  5. Below the hotkeys, the “Smart cleanup” switch fixes punctuation, self-corrections and filler words on this computer.
  1. In Settings, click “Auto-correct”, under AI Configuration.
  2. Type the word the way you want it written. If Unidesk keeps hearing it differently, add what it hears in the second box.
  3. Click “Add”, or press Enter. To add many at once, click “Paste a list” and paste one per line.
  4. New dictations, meeting transcripts and summaries use your words. Older transcripts stay as they are.
  5. Common work terms like API, PR, QA and UI/UX are already built in.
  1. In Settings, click “Storage”.
  2. Under “Audio Source”, click “Microphone Only”, “Meeting Window Audio” or “Both (Recommended)”.
  3. “Both (Recommended)” records everyone, even when you wear headphones.
  4. Under “Recordings”, click “Browse” to pick a different folder.
  5. Changing the folder does not move existing files; new recordings go to the new folder.
  1. In Settings, click “Widgets”.
  2. Under “Widget Position”, click “Top center”, “Left center”, “Right center” or “Bottom center”.
  3. The pill appears at that edge the next time a meeting is detected.
  4. Under “Recording Widget”, turn “Show time” or “Show recording size” off to hide them.
  1. In Settings, click “Updates”, then click “Check for updates”.
  2. Unidesk also checks when it opens and once a week, and downloads updates in the background.
  3. Click “Account” to see your name, email and plan.
  4. “Delete account” deletes your cloud account; your meetings, recordings and notes stay on this computer.
  1. In Settings → Account, click “Upgrade”.
  2. In the “Unidesk Cloud” window, click “Monthly” or “Yearly”; Yearly gives 2 months free.
  3. Click “Get Pro” or “Get Max”, and checkout opens in your web browser.
  4. Finish paying there; Unidesk unlocks Cloud by itself and shows “Cloud is ready”.
  5. Account then shows your plan, its renewal date, “Change plan” and “Cancel subscription”.
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