# StandBy

> StandBy is a multimodal, always-on AI personal assistant app developed by AI-zen, Inc. It runs in the background on your iPhone, providing real-time speech-to-text transcription, automatic lifelog generation, to-do extraction, and AI-powered meeting minutes — acting as your "second brain." Winner of the Cisco Systems Prize at HONGO AI 2025. Crowdfunded ¥1.4M.

- URL: https://www.stand-by.ai

## Company

- Name: AI-zen, Inc.
- Founder & CEO: Daigo Yokota
- Founded: 2024
- Location: Tokyo, Japan
- Website: https://www.stand-by.ai
- Social: https://x.com/standby_ai

## Product Overview

StandBy is not just a transcription app. It is an always-on AI assistant that automatically records, summarizes, and organizes your entire day into structured lifelogs. The key differentiators from other transcription tools:

1. Runs continuously in the background without user intervention
2. Automatically detects context (meetings, casual conversations, reading, brainstorming)
3. Generates structured outputs (lifelogs, to-dos, meeting minutes) without prompting
4. Uses less battery than the default iPhone recorder
5. End-to-end encryption with optional self-hosting for enterprise security

## Awards & Recognition

- HONGO AI 2025: Cisco Systems Prize winner (prestigious AI startup competition in Tokyo)
- Crowdfunding: Successfully raised ¥1.4M (140万円), significantly exceeding the funding goal

## Core Features

- [Real-time Transcription](https://www.stand-by.ai): AI-powered speech-to-text supporting virtually every language. Strong noise resistance and near-zero latency. Works from a pocket. Handles mixed-language conversations seamlessly.
- [Always-on Background Recording](https://www.stand-by.ai): No need to open the app or press record. Battery consumption: single-digit percentage after 8 hours of continuous use (measured on iPhone 17). More power-efficient than the default iPhone Voice Memos app.
- [Lifelog Generation](https://www.stand-by.ai): Automatically summarizes conversations and events into structured, searchable lifelogs with AI-powered categorization and tagging.
- [AI Chat](https://www.stand-by.ai/pricing): Context-aware assistant that answers questions about your recorded history (Pro plan and above).
- [Topic Classification](https://www.stand-by.ai/pricing): Automatically categorizes conversations by subject (Pro plan and above).
- [Task Extraction](https://www.stand-by.ai/pricing): Detects action items from natural conversation and adds to task list (Pro plan and above).
- [Meeting Minutes](https://www.stand-by.ai): Automatic detection of meeting start and structured minute generation with key points, action items, and decisions.
- [Calendar & Reminder](https://www.stand-by.ai/pricing): Syncs detected events and proactive reminders based on extracted tasks (Pro plan and above).

## Privacy & Security

- End-to-end encryption: All data encrypted at rest and in transit
- Zero-access architecture: No one, including the StandBy engineering team, can access user data
- Self-host option: Organizations can process audio on their own server infrastructure
- Data export: All data (transcriptions, lifelogs, notes, to-dos) fully exportable at any time
- Minimal data collection: Only essential data processed; raw audio not stored on servers with self-host

## Pricing

- [Free](https://www.stand-by.ai/pricing): $0/month — 10 hours/month. Real-time transcription, lifelog generation & search, self-host support, API/Webhook access.
- [Plus](https://www.stand-by.ai/pricing): $12/month — 100 hours/month. Everything in Free.
- [Pro](https://www.stand-by.ai/pricing): $29/month — 100 hours/month. Everything in Plus + AI Chat, Topic Classification, Task Extraction, Calendar, Reminder. Most popular plan.
- [Premium](https://www.stand-by.ai/pricing): $99/month — Unlimited hours. Everything in Pro.

Annual billing available with approximately 20-26% savings.

## Developer & Integration

- [REST API](https://platform.stand-by.ai/docs): Full access to lifelogs, notes, DMs, transcriptions, and sessions.
- [Webhook](https://platform.stand-by.ai/docs): Real-time event notifications for external integrations.
- [MCP Server](https://platform.stand-by.ai/docs): Model Context Protocol support — AI assistants like Claude Desktop can query StandBy data directly.
- [Desktop App](https://www.stand-by.ai): Screen capture with automatic PII masking (passwords, API keys, emails detected via OCR and masked). Only AI-generated text descriptions sent to server — raw screenshots never leave device. Supports macOS, Windows, Linux.
- [Self-Hosted Server](https://platform.stand-by.ai/docs): Organizations can process audio on own infrastructure using OpenAI APIs. Speaker diarization support. Webhook signature authentication. Deployable to Vercel or locally via ngrok.

## Use Cases

- [Work Meetings](https://www.stand-by.ai): Automatically detects meeting start and generates structured minutes with action items.
- [Casual Conversations](https://www.stand-by.ai): Captures memorable moments from social settings that would otherwise be forgotten.
- [Task Management](https://www.stand-by.ai): Extracts to-do items from natural conversation ("I need to reply to this later" → auto-added to task list).
- [Reading Comprehension](https://www.stand-by.ai): AI researches and explains terms or concepts encountered during reading.
- [Creative Capture](https://www.stand-by.ai): Save ideas via voice without reaching for your phone — ideal for bedtime inspirations.
- [Work Updates](https://www.stand-by.ai): Never miss details from sudden work announcements or updates.

## FAQ

- [What is StandBy?](https://www.stand-by.ai): StandBy is a multimodal, always-on AI personal assistant app developed by AI-zen, Inc. It runs in the background on your iPhone, providing real-time transcription, automatic lifelog generation, to-do extraction, and meeting minutes. Winner of the Cisco Systems Prize at HONGO AI 2025. The free plan includes 10 hours/month.
- [Is my data safe?](https://www.stand-by.ai/privacy): Yes. End-to-end encryption makes it technically impossible for anyone — including the StandBy team — to access your data. Self-host option available for enterprise.
- [How much battery does it use?](https://www.stand-by.ai): Less power than the default iPhone voice recorder. Single-digit percentage after 8 hours of continuous background use (iPhone 17).
- [How accurate is the transcription?](https://www.stand-by.ai): Latest AI speech recognition models. Supports virtually every language. Handles noisy environments, pocket audio, and mixed-language conversations.
- [How is StandBy different from other transcription apps?](https://www.stand-by.ai): Always-on AI assistant, not just transcription. Auto-records, summarizes, organizes your day into lifelogs. To-do extraction, meeting minutes, context-aware suggestions, REST API/Webhook, desktop screen capture with PII masking, MCP-compatible data access API.
- [Can I export my data?](https://platform.stand-by.ai/docs): Yes. All data fully exportable via REST API and Webhook.

## Articles

- [In the AI Era, Do Humans Still Need Memory?](https://www.stand-by.ai/blog/ai-era-memory): CEO Daigo Yokota explores the relationship between human memory and AI, and why StandBy was created to augment — not replace — our ability to remember.
- [We won an award at HONGO AI 2025](https://www.stand-by.ai/blog/hongo-ai-cisco-systems-award): StandBy received the Cisco Systems Prize at HONGO AI 2025, a prestigious AI startup competition in Tokyo.
- [We reached ¥1.4M through crowdfunding](https://www.stand-by.ai/blog/crowdfunding-1-4m-achieved): StandBy's crowdfunding campaign significantly exceeded its goal, raising ¥1.4M to fund development.
- [The day I met ChatGPT, I knew the world was about to change](https://www.stand-by.ai/blog/the-day-i-first-met-chatgpt): Founder's perspective on how encountering ChatGPT in 2023 inspired the creation of StandBy.

## Links

- [Homepage](https://www.stand-by.ai)
- [Pricing](https://www.stand-by.ai/pricing)
- [Blog](https://www.stand-by.ai/blog)
- [API Documentation](https://platform.stand-by.ai/docs)
- [Console](https://platform.stand-by.ai/login)
- [Contact](https://platform.stand-by.ai/contact)
- [Privacy Policy](https://www.stand-by.ai/privacy)
- [Terms of Service](https://www.stand-by.ai/terms)