Answer the ping and still send what you said you would
The Recall Mac app keeps the tasks from your chats in Slack, Teams, Telegram, WhatsApp and Mail on one list, with nothing to connect. When you come back, it shows any note you left and reopens the tab you were on.
Refund rules spec
“I stopped at partial refunds. Next, ask Jun about the modal.”
Project · Group bookings
- Google ChromeRefund rules spec in Google Docs, the tab you were on
- LinearThe app opens, you pick the issue
- SlackThe app opens, you pick the channel
This card is Smart Return. Example: Millrace, a fictional booking-software company, and its client Oakline Hotels. People and messages are made up.
You are the one who knows which message is current
The spec is in Google Docs, Noor's request in Slack, the client's in Telegram, and only you know which one is current. Halfway through a sentence, Slack pings, and you type “sure, will send it today” before two more pings and a call.
- Your work
- Specs, quotes and vendor sheets, with Slack, Teams or Telegram open beside them all day.
- Where you lose the thread
- Half a sentence waits in the doc while you answer the ping, and falling behind is what tells you a yes slipped.
- What Recall gives you
- One list of what you owe people, read off your screen with nothing to connect, and the way back into the doc you left.
How it fits a day of pings
A fictional Tuesday at Millrace, about a week after installing, with nobody muted.
Noor asks if you can send Callum the refund rules today. Before you switch to Slack, you press ⌥⌘B and leave one line: “I stopped at partial refunds. Next, ask Jun about the modal.” Then you type “sure, will send it today”.
Note and taskyour line stays on the thread, and what you told Noor goes on your list
He wants the go-live dates before Thursday's call, on Telegram. You read it on your Mac and move on without replying.
Tasks from your chatshis request joins Noor's on one list, whichever app it came from
Your note sits on top of the Smart Return card, at the bottom right of the screen. One click brings back the Google Docs tab and opens Linear and Slack. Noor and Callum sit in the list underneath.
Smart Returnsays what it will reopen, and opens nothing until you click
Before you close the lid, the Owed list on the Today page shows two rows. Its All in Loops link opens the full list, where each row has its buttons. You send Callum the refund rules and mark that row Done yourself, because Recall can't tell it went. The go-live dates depend on the release call in the morning, so you Snooze that row until tomorrow.
Loopsholds each row until you mark it done, with at most one quiet reminder a day for each
One list for what you said you would do.
When someone asks in Slack, Teams, Telegram, WhatsApp or Mail, or you say you will do it, and it is on your screen, Recall adds it to the tasks from your chats that day.
Each row has Open chat, Done, Snooze and Not a commitment. Open chat brings the app forward, and in Slack you pick the channel yourself.
Press ⌥⌘B before you switch to Slack, and Smart Return leads with your line, then one click brings back the Google Docs tab.
Linear and Slack open as apps. Forget the note, and the Leave a note? pill can offer to take it, or the card names an open question instead.
The Owed list on the Today page shows what you still owe, who asked and how long ago, and All in Loops opens the full list.
Recall can't tell when something is sent, so you mark it Done, or Snooze it until tomorrow.
The animations are illustrations with made-up data. The other screen is from the real app, on a demo day at another made-up company.
Where it stops, and what it keeps.
- Done
- Recall can't tell when you are done. A task stays open until you mark it, even after you send the thing.
- Slack returns
- A return to Slack opens the app, not the channel, and so does Open chat. Telegram, Linear and Figma do the same. Sharper returns are in active development.
- Misreads
- It can list a line that was never a commitment and miss one that was. Not a commitment removes a wrong row, and nothing shows the ones it missed.
- Screen only
- A message you never open on your Mac, or a yes typed on your phone, never reaches the list. Webmail is read poorly, so expect tasks from the Mail app.
- Calls
- No recording or meeting notes, and no microphone. Recall still reads the screen during a call, so a shared slide or the call window's title can end up in its description. Put the decision in a note.
- Your board
- No sync. Two-way links with Jira, Trello and ClickUp are being explored, with no commitment.
- Clients
- Two clients' docs can land in one project. Move to project fixes it, and a name you give stays.
Your chats hold other people's words, often a client's. What is on your screen stays on your Mac: Recall looks at it about every 15 seconds, then discards the image, and it never uses the microphone, camera, keystrokes or clipboard. One exception to discarding the image: when a chat message becomes a task, Recall may keep a small picture of that chat on your Mac, only while the task is open.
It keeps short descriptions of the screen, app names, window titles and the tasks from your chats there. Usage analytics and crash reports are on by default, never carry anything from your screen, and one switch turns them off. Diagnostics sharing is off by default.
If you turn it on, screenshots redacted on your Mac can be sent to us, so check your client contracts first.
Questions PMs and ops leads ask
Do I need to connect Slack or ask an admin?
No. There is no API, no account to link and no bot in the channel, so a workspace admin has nothing to approve. Recall needs two macOS permissions on your own Mac, Screen Recording and Accessibility, and on a company-managed Mac your IT team may control those.
Will it catch everything I say yes to?
No. Recall misreads some chats, in both directions, so keep your own record of anything contractual. Not a commitment removes a wrong row, and the same task said twice or reworded stays one row.
Does Recall mark a task done when I reply?
No. Recall does not detect when an ask is done. Tick it done on Smart Return, choose Done in Loops, or snooze it until tonight, tomorrow or next week.
Does Open chat take me to the exact Slack conversation?
No. Open chat brings Slack forward, and you pick the channel or DM. When the thread has saved windows, you see the restore checklist first, with Slack as one row.
Can I keep one client's requests together?
Yes. Choose Move to project on one of their requests. Their other open requests in that app follow, and so do new ones. The same person in another app takes its own move.
Can I use it on client work?
Yes, if your contract allows software that reads your screen, so check that first. SOC 2 is planned and no audit has been performed. Exclusions work per app, so you can't exclude one client, and excluding Slack also means no tasks from Slack. To keep one client's work out, pause Recall from the menu bar while you do it.
Will it remind me while I am still in the conversation?
No. Nothing comes up for something asked today while you are still in that conversation. After that it is one quiet card, at most once a day for each task and never more than one an hour, and older tasks come up only every few days. Snooze holds one until the task wakes, and Pause in the menu bar stops Recall altogether.
Does it replace Linear or Jira?
No. Keep your board for the team's work. Recall holds what you personally said you would do and where you stopped, and it does not write to your board.
What does it take to try on my own Mac, and what does it cost?
You need Apple silicon (M1 or newer) and macOS 14 or later. Windows is on the roadmap with no date. Setup asks before it downloads Recall Core, about 1.9 GB. Expect your first threads within the hour, your whole day on the Today page tonight, and Smart Return tomorrow after a break. The 30-day free trial needs no card. After that it is $14 / month, or $9 / month billed annually at $108: one plan, one device, with a 7-day money-back guarantee.