The IT Security Reality Check

We need to be honest with you: if your organization's IT security policies block screen recording or audio capture, Breakout Buddy won't be able to work its magic. 🪄❌

We're good, but we're not "bypass enterprise security policies" good (and frankly, we wouldn't want to be). Think of us like a friendly golden retriever—enthusiastic and helpful, but ultimately limited by the fences in your yard.

The good news: Most standard Zoom, Teams, and Webex setups work perfectly fine. The restrictions we're talking about are typically only found in highly regulated industries (finance, healthcare, government) or organizations with particularly strict IT policies.

How Breakout Buddy Works

1. Audio Capture

When you click "Start Recording," your browser asks for permission to capture your meeting tab's audio (what other people are saying) and your microphone (what you're saying). Both are combined into a single recording.

2. Transcription & Speaker Diarization

After you stop recording, the audio is sent to AssemblyAI, which transcribes it and automatically identifies different speakers (Speaker A, Speaker B, etc.). This usually takes 1-3 minutes depending on recording length.

3. Download Your Transcript

Once processing is complete, you can download both the transcript (with speaker labels) and the original audio file from either the completion screen or the admin dashboard.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

❌ "Failed to start recording. Please ensure you granted permissions."

Cause: You didn't complete all three permission steps.

Solution: Make sure you:

  • Select your meeting tab/window in the browser dialog
  • Check the "Share tab audio" or "Also share tab audio" checkbox
  • Click "Allow" when asked for microphone access

❌ "Your browser doesn't support this feature."

Cause: You're using an unsupported browser.

Solution: Use Chrome, Edge, or Opera. Safari and Firefox have limited support for tab audio capture.

❌ Transcript shows only one speaker

Cause: Either only one person spoke, or audio quality was too poor for speaker diarization.

Solution: Make sure everyone speaks clearly and there's minimal background noise. Speaker diarization works best with distinct voices and good audio quality.

❌ Transcript is still "Processing" after 10+ minutes

Cause: Very long recordings (15+ minutes) or AssemblyAI service delays.

Solution: Check the admin dashboard. If status is still "processing" after 15 minutes, contact support with your recording ID.

Best Practices

  • Test before your important meeting: Do a quick 30-second test recording to make sure everything works.
  • Give your recording a name: Use descriptive names like "Team Planning - Feb 9" to stay organized.
  • Keep recordings under 20 minutes: Breakout Buddy automatically stops after 20 minutes to save credits.
  • Use headphones: This prevents echo and improves audio quality for better transcription.
  • Minimize background noise: Close to a quiet space for best speaker diarization results.