How to turn a meeting into clear notes and action items with AI

Gather and clean your meeting text

Your first step is to get your raw meeting information ready. Open the document, email, or video conferencing application (like Zoom or Teams) where your meeting notes or transcript are stored. Select all the text from the meeting and copy it. While you're looking at the text, take a quick moment to delete any highly private or sensitive information—like bank account numbers or specific client passwords—before you copy it.

You'll know it worked when you have the meeting text copied, and you've given it a quick check for anything sensitive.

Open your AI assistant

Next, open your preferred web browser (like Chrome, Safari, or Firefox) and type in the website address for your chosen AI tool (e.g., chat.openai.com for ChatGPT, gemini.google.com for Gemini, or claude.ai for Claude). Log in if prompted. Think of these tools as friendly, highly capable office assistants who are ready to read and write at your command.

You'll know it worked when you see the AI assistant's main chat screen, usually with a large text input box at the bottom where you can type. If you see a welcome screen, just click "Next" or "Agree" until you reach the main chat interface.

Write your prompt (instruction)

To get the best result from your AI assistant, you need to write a clear prompt. A prompt is simply the specific instruction or question you type into an AI tool to tell it what to do. In the chat box at the bottom of the screen, you'll type or paste your instructions. For a great meeting summary, tell the AI exactly who it is representing, what to look for, and how to format the output.

You'll know it worked when you see the text of your instructions clearly visible in the input box, ready for you to add your meeting notes.

1. Summary: A three-sentence overview of the main topics discussed.
2. Key Decisions: A bulleted list of any final decisions made during the call.
3. Action Items: A list of tasks, clearly showing who is responsible for each task and the deadline (if mentioned). Keep the tone professional, clear, and direct, suitable for an internal team email."

Paste your meeting text

Now, immediately below the prompt you just typed or pasted into the chat box, you will paste your messy notes or full meeting transcript. Just click in the input area and use your device's paste command (Ctrl+V on Windows, Command+V on Mac, or tap and hold on mobile). If the text is very long, don't worry. Most modern AI systems have a large context window (which is simply the AI's short-term memory—the maximum amount of text it can read and remember in a single go).

You'll know it worked when your meeting text appears directly below your prompt in the chat input box. If the text looks too long for the box, don't worry; it will usually scroll down, and the AI can still read it all.

Send your request to the AI

Once your prompt and the meeting text are both in the chat box, it's time to send them to the AI for processing. Look for the send button, which is usually shaped like a small paper plane or an arrow, located next to or below the text input box. Click or tap this button. The AI will then start processing your request, reading through all the information you provided and working to organise it as instructed.

You'll know it worked when the input box clears, and the AI assistant begins typing its response, often line by line, above your message. If it looks different, the button might just say "Send" or be a simple 'Enter' key symbol; just click the most obvious action button.

Review and refine the results

After a few moments, the AI will present its organised output: a summary, key decisions, and action items. Read through this first draft carefully. It's important to remember that while AI is powerful, it can sometimes hallucinate (a term for when the AI confidently makes up facts, names, or dates that were never actually mentioned). Always read through the output once to verify accuracy before sharing it. If the first draft isn't perfect, you can easily ask for changes. You do not need to start over; just type a new request in the chat box, talking to the AI like a human colleague. The AI can draft the notes, but it cannot verify facts or send the final email for you.

You'll know it worked when you have a structured set of meeting notes that accurately reflect your discussion, and you're happy with the clarity and format.

• "Reword the summary so it sounds a bit more casual, ready to put into our team Slack channel, and make it two sentences instead of three."
• "Please add a 'Next Steps' section at the end, saying we'll review these items next week."