So, I met Dhananjay (DJ) for the first time at the insistence of Aditya Sir. Aditya had told me that DJ was working on an AI-wearable. Mind you, this was some 6 months ago, before AI became ubiquitous.
So I was curious!
The first thing that struck me was his fitness.
He is extremely fit and ripped, and he has long flariy hair, and I was like yaar I wish I could be like that!
Any how, the second thing, and more pertinent to this post that hit me was the blinking pendant he was wearing around his neck. The curious cat in me asked him, what was it.
And turns out, it was an early version of Neo. An AI-enabled notetaker that you hang around your neck! Wow!
At the time, he mentioned that Neo can also track the emotions of the people in the conversations. For example, while talking, if somebody’s sad while talking to you, the notetaker will tell you that the other person was sad.
Now somebody like me who likes the idea of living in public, and taking notes, and wanting to be a super connector, this seemed like a godsend thing. I could focus on conversations and be fully present in the meetings. I won’t have to carry a notepad, I won’t have to break eye contact, and I will absorb more! I am anyway, a big fan of augmenting human capability with such tools and all.
So when I finally got access, I had high expectations. And here’s my unbiased, honest review and how I use it.
USE CASE 1 – THINKING
1.1/ I use this while I want to talk to myself.
I go for walks and I don’t carry a notepad etc.
I merely talk out loud the things that I want to save. Since the device does NOT record the conversation, I also use the voice memo feature on my iPhone to record those.
USE CASE 2 – IRL MEETINGS
2.1/ I use this in physical meetings where people are ok with a physical device.
TBH, till these browser-based based AI-notetakers were not commonplace, it was tough to get consent. Now, all I say is, think of this as my AI notetaker from the browser window, in a physical meeting room.
In those meetings, I can focus on conversations and outcomes and all that. Rather than scribbling furiously in my notes.
No, I dont use this for online meetings. For that, I use Granola. Ofc, if Neo comes up with a browser extension, I will try it.
2.2/ Saves me the pain from decoding my handwriting 😀
2.3/ Once I have those notes, I port those into my Roam. While I do that, I add context. This is where all the magic happens.
USE CASE 3 – EARLY DRAFTS FOR WHAT I WRITE
3.1/ I also use this to “write” early drafts.
My best writing happens when I have talked out loud about a concept. And then I let that simmer in my head. And then I vomit out the word salad. And then I don’t edit (lol).
And with Neo, I talk about loud about what I want to write. And then I use that as my first draft.
PS: A large part of this very post was “written” by Neo! See raw notes in screenshot.
WHAT WORKS FOR ME?
1/ Battery life is GREAT!
I charge it once every 2 days
2/ It can gather voice streams even in noisy environments.
This is great. Because I am at a Starbucks all the time.
Or I am walking on the noisy roads (Mumbai, you know)
3/ The notes and summaries are pretty amazing.
I dont know what engine they use at the backend but it captures pretty much everything!
WHAT DOESN’T WORK FOR ME
1/ I don’t like the form factor.
Nothing to do with Neo. Just that I dont like pendants. Even when I do podcasts. I hate to use a clipon mic.
2/ Haptic Feedback
I want the “click” button to start the device to give me some haptic feedback.
Right now, it doesnt do anything. I mean it works, but I like some feedback for sure. This is the very reason why I was bearish on touch phones when they first came (really!).
3/ Audio recordings
I wish the device were like a dictaphone where I could record everything. Often, there is merit in relistening to conversations. Right now I cant access raw recordingts.
FINAL VERDICT?
I like it. I would love to make this a part of the joining kit of every team member.
If you want a gadget that can become your note-taking copilot, you MUST try it. I want DJ and Neo to succeed. So, I could be biased in my opinions.
I would encourage you to try it. However, as always, please do your due diligence. I could be biased.
So, that’s it. In case you do end up buying / using, lemme know and we must chat on use cases.
PS: DISCLAIMERS
1/ I paid for Neo. I paid 9999, cos I was one of the early backers.
I did not get any freebies or money from DJ for this.
PS: Price seems to have gone up.
2/ Here are raw notes from the app after I “talked” to it.
