Turn meeting notes into action items with AI

Start with the notes you already have

You leave a meeting with a page of notes, but the useful question is still: who is doing what next?

Open Claude, or the chat app you already use, and paste your notes. Rough bullet points are fine. For work notes, use the tool your team allows and leave out unrelated personal details.

This approach starts in an ordinary chat. It doesn’t need a meeting recorder, a new integration or a connection to your task manager.

Ask for three separate things

A summary can mix together an idea, a decision and a promise. Ask for these sections instead:

• Decisions: what the group actually agreed.
• Actions: the task, who owns it and when it is due.
• Open questions: what still needs an answer.

Ask it to include a short supporting note beside each action. That gives you a quick way to see why something ended up on the list.

Don’t let blank spaces turn into promises

If the notes don’t name an owner, use “Not agreed.” Do the same for a missing deadline.

“Maybe we could do that next week” should stay a suggestion unless the notes show it was agreed. If the AI turns it into a firm task, say: “That was only an idea. Move it to open questions.”

You can also ask: “Which rows need someone to confirm an owner or date?”

Turn the draft into a follow-up

Once the list looks right, ask: “Write a short message for the team. Start with the decisions, then the tasks, and finish with what we still need to confirm.”

Read the names and dates, make your changes and send it through the channel you normally use. Keep the original notes nearby until everyone has had a chance to correct the recap.

The next step can be small: take the notes from your next meeting and try the prompt below. If you want help making the message sound like you, try the writing guide.

Turn these meeting notes into a draft for review. Give me: 1) decisions made; 2) a table with Task | Owner | Due date | Supporting note; 3) open questions. Use only what the notes actually say. Write “Not agreed” if an owner or date is missing. Keep suggestions separate from decisions. Then draft a short follow-up message. Meeting notes: [paste your notes]