Creo IT Private Limited / In-house product / 2025
Fly on
the Wall
Record locally.
No bots.
Bring your own AI key.
I designed FlyOnTheWall, Creo IT’s in-house AI meeting assistant for Mac. Built around private recordings, bot-free capture and optional bring your own key (BYOK) setup, with Indian professionals as the research audience.
Meeting notes compete with listening.
Professionals need decisions and follow-ups captured, but manual note-taking divides attention. Recording tools add friction when permissions, recording state and AI processing are unclear.
People have to switch between listening, capturing decisions and organizing follow-ups. An unfamiliar meeting bot, unclear microphone permissions or complicated provider-key setup can interrupt that workflow and undermine trust.
Solution
Keep capture, processing and note review in one workspace.
FlyOnTheWall keeps capture, processing and note review in one Mac workspace. The design makes recording state visible and separates everyday use from optional provider-key configuration.
Local audio storage and external AI processing are different concerns. The interface needs to explain both without making a blanket promise that every AI action happens on-device.
Meeting audio
Local recording
Meeting transcript
Discussion highlightsReview before sharing
Audio stays local. Connect an AI provider separately to transcribe and review your notes.
Make recording deliberate
Explain permissions and keep start and stop controls visible.
Make notes useful
Help people review decisions and find the next action.
Keep AI setup optional
Give technical users provider control without complicating the main flow.
Respect the Mac
Use familiar layouts and coherent light and dark states.
Business impact
Shipped / Mac App Store
A meeting product taken to market.
The design work supported Creo IT’s launch of a native Mac meeting assistant: from permissions and recording to processing, note review and launch presentation. A connected workflow gives professionals a product they can use beyond the first recording.
- Current evidence
- FlyOnTheWall is live on the Mac App Store under Creo IT Private Limited. Release is the confirmed business milestone; adoption, revenue and conversion uplift are not reported in this case study.
- What to measure next
- Evaluate setup-to-first-note completion, repeat recording and note-review sessions, and recovery from permissions or processing issues.
Target audience
Indian professionals.
Real meeting routines.
Research focused on Indian Mac users. Their technical confidence and meeting responsibilities shape how much guidance the product needs to offer.
People who need to listen and follow up.
Product managers, consultants and founders working through project reviews, client calls and team discussions. They need straightforward recording and meeting outputs they can check before sharing.
- Clear permission requests before the first recording
- Readable decisions and follow-up tasks
- Familiar names, accents and work vocabulary in evaluation tasks
More control over the AI connection.
Developers and technical founders who understand provider accounts and want to configure their own keys. Their setup needs should not become a requirement for every other user.
- Named provider fields in Developer Mode
- Clear distinction between audio storage and AI processing
- Visible plan and usage information before committing
Research & evaluation
Understand the meeting before designing the notes.
Competitor review, interviews and task-based evaluation focus on capture, trust, setup and the usefulness of the output.
Competitor analysis
Review capture, privacy explanations, note review and AI setup.
User interviews
Explore Indian users’ meeting habits and recording concerns.
Prototype evaluation
Walk through setup, recording and working with notes.
Privacy & state review
Check permissions, processing feedback and intentional sharing.
Competitor analysis
Compare the tasks. Question the assumptions.
These tools are relevant benchmarks for Indian professionals using international meeting platforms. The comparison uses public product descriptions and asks what FlyOnTheWall needs to make clear.
| Product | Publicly described offering | Design question for FlyOnTheWall |
|---|---|---|
| Granola | Captures meeting audio without a participant bot and uses transcription and AI providers to create notes. | How can we explain local recordings separately from any external AI processing? |
| Otter | Meeting capture, transcription, summaries and AI chat across meeting content. | How can a small Mac workspace make the current recording and its notes easy to manage? |
| Fireflies | Meeting capture, transcripts, summaries and search, with meeting-bot and upload workflows. | How can recording feel deliberate and visible without introducing another meeting participant? |
Public sources reviewed on 18 October 2026. This is a workflow comparison, not a ranking or a claim that other products lack a capability.
Interview guide / reconstructed
Questions tied to real meeting tasks.
Start with the same core questions for Indian participants, then follow up on their role and technical experience. This keeps the research comparable without assuming everyone has the same needs.
Core questions for every participant
Understand recording and AI processingBefore starting a client meeting, explain where you think the audio stays and what an AI provider may receive when you generate notes.
Design decision it informs: Checks the distinction between local recording, transcription and external AI processing. Determines which explanations belong in setup and Developer Mode.
Recover from missing permissionsThe microphone permission is off. Show how you would find the problem, allow access and return to recording.
Design decision it informs: Tests whether permission status, instructions and the return path are clear enough to complete setup.
Check the usefulness of the notesRead this sample project-review note. Find a decision and the next action. What would you verify before sharing it with a colleague?
Design decision it informs: Tests note hierarchy and whether people treat AI output as something to review rather than an approved record.
Follow-ups by user persona
Founder & developerYou already have an AI provider account. Show how you would configure your key, then explain what you expect the app and provider to process.
Design decision it informs: Tests whether Developer Mode, provider labels and data-handling explanations make sense before a key is entered.
Usability evaluation / reconstructed scenarios
Watch people complete the task.
Use moderated walkthroughs and consented sample meetings with non-sensitive content. The scenarios show risks to test and the design response, rather than claiming that a previous version failed.
Complete permission setup
A first-time user may not understand why microphone and system audio access are requested.
Dedicated permission screens and a permissions destination in Settings.
Ask the participant to explain each permission, recover from a denied permission and return to the main workspace.
Task completion, hesitation, recovery steps and the participant’s explanation. Keep any recordings or notes only with agreement. Do not capture real API keys or confidential meeting content.
Check the first recording
Can someone complete setup and identify when recording starts and stops without a hint?
Review the output
Can they find an action, rename the note and understand what sharing will send?
Test Indian meeting contexts
Use familiar names and project vocabulary. Check accents and mixed-language conversation as evaluation needs, without implying support for unverified languages.
Indian user personas
Illustrative profiles representing the research audience. Names and needs explain the design context; they are not participant identities or direct quotes.
Arjun Rao
Bengaluru / Technical user
NeedsQuick meeting notes with control over the AI provider and API setup.
Design responseA dedicated Developer Mode with clearly labeled provider keys.
Meera Iyer
Chennai / Privacy-conscious user
NeedsStay present during client discussions and understand how a recording is handled.
Design responseVisible recording controls, explained permissions and deliberate sharing.
Neha Sharma
Pune / Frequent meeting participant
NeedsFind decisions and follow-up tasks without rereading an entire transcript.
Design responseA persistent notes list, readable note detail and direct export controls.
Design strategy
Make every state easy to understand.
The important decisions concern what the person sees before recording, while waiting and when returning to a meeting note.
The frictionA hidden recorder leaves people unsure whether the meeting is still being captured.
My design responseKeep recording progress and the stop action visible, with a clear transition into note generation.
Working within the project constraints.
The product needed a coherent native Mac experience, permission-dependent recording and useful feedback while notes were prepared. As the lead designer, I connected the brand, component states, product flow and release presentation with the engineering team.
Information architecture & flow
From first setup to a useful meeting note.
Prepare the workspace, capture a conversation, review the result and return to it later. Settings support the journey without becoming the main task.
Start the setup
Welcome introduces the app. In the portfolio prototype, continue to the use-case selection. Sign-in is shown in the screen library.
Information architecture
Product sitemap
The product areas and screens within them. The journey above shows task order.
Getting started
- Welcome
- Sign in (screen design)
- Choose a use case
- Permissions (screen designs)
- Initial plan overlay
Notes workspace
- Empty workspace
- Recording
- Warming up & generating
- Notes list & note detail
- Rename, playback & export
- Share & meeting chat
Settings & plans
- General / appearance
- Permissions
- Developer Mode / provider keys
- Integrations
- Subscription plans
About the portfolio prototype
The browser prototype demonstrates the core recording-to-notes flow with sample content. It does not record real meetings, call live AI providers or complete purchases. Permissions and sign-in screens are available in the gallery; settings, plan and sharing actions simulate the product behavior.
The design system behind FlyOnTheWall
A design system.
Built for Mac.
I built the foundations and reusable components around recording controls, long-form notes, settings and dialogs. Light and dark themes follow the same interaction rules.
- Shared colors, typography and spacing
- Recording, permission and processing states
- Component guidance and developer handoff
<RecordingControl state="active" />My working process
How I designed the product.
I connected research, structured briefs, Figma design work and interactive reviews, then documented the components for engineering handoff.
Define the problem and project scope
I worked with Creo IT to define an in-house Mac meeting assistant built around private recordings and usable meeting notes.
- Map the main tasks: prepare, record, review and share.
- Agree on the first-release scope with the founder and engineers.
- Separate local audio handling from the optional AI-provider connection.
Output: A shared product brief and privacy-related design constraints.
Research users, competitors and tasks
The research focus was Indian Mac users, including developers, client-facing professionals and people in frequent project meetings.
- Compare capture, permissions, notes and AI setup in relevant meeting tools.
- Discuss current note-taking habits and what people need before recording a conversation.
- Turn the questions into tasks for the prototype, including first recording and API-key setup.
Output: Task priorities for setup, recording visibility, notes and Developer Mode.
Write a structured design brief
I used ChatGPT to organize the product requirements into a design brief that I could review and refine.
- Describe the audience, screen list, core tasks and platform constraints.
- Include the loading, empty, permission and interruption states.
- Review the brief before using it to generate design work.
Output: A reviewed brief with screen requirements and acceptance criteria.
Create wireframes in Figma through MCP
I used Claude Code connected to Figma through MCP to develop the wireframes. Figma held the layouts and reusable design work.
- Lay out onboarding, the recording workspace and note detail.
- Connect the main paths and check that important actions remain easy to find.
- Review the layouts with the business owner before adding visual detail.
Output: Wireframes for the core meeting-to-notes flow.
Build a prototype, test and revise
I used an interactive prototype to review the flow with users and the business owner, then revised the designs.
- Prototype first-run setup, recording, note generation and note review.
- Use task-based walkthroughs with Indian users instead of asking whether they like a screen.
- Record unclear labels and missing feedback, then revise and review the affected flow.
Output: A reviewed prototype and updated wireframes. Reconstructed test examples appear in the research section.
Build the visual foundations
The product uses a restrained forest-green and warm-neutral palette, with both light and dark surfaces for a native Mac experience.
- Define color roles, type styles, spacing and icon use.
- Check the recording, loading and disabled states in both themes.
- Review long meeting notes and dense settings content for readability.
Output: Reusable visual foundations for light and dark themes.
Build components and final screens
I built the component library around the actual recurring controls, then assembled the final screen set.
- Create shared buttons, inputs, note-list rows, settings controls and dialogs.
- Specify default, selected, loading, disabled and interruption states.
- Review the complete journey and check light and dark variants together.
Output: A consistent screen library covering setup, recording, notes, settings and plans.
Document the handoff and support release
I prepared the design and component references for the engineering team and supported the App Store presentation.
- Document component states, interaction behavior and usage guidance.
- Review the implementation with engineers against the approved designs.
- Prepare the release-facing visuals and check the first-run experience.
Output: Developer handoff and launch presentation for Creo IT’s in-house product.
Accessibility / Design & developer handoff
Recording with clear feedback.
WCAG 2.2 Level AA guides the design and implementation requirements. Recording, interruption and completion states need written status alongside visual indicators. Notes remain readable and selectable. macOS handoff includes keyboard shortcuts, VoiceOver labels and predictable focus when dialogs close.
Readable, beyond color
Text contrast: at least 4.5:1, or 3:1 for large text. Essential control boundaries and state indicators: 3:1. Labels and symbols carry meaning alongside color.
1.4.1 · 1.4.3 · 1.4.11Keyboard & focus
Every action works by keyboard, with visible focus that stays in view. Dialogs contain focus, support Escape and return focus to the trigger. Web targets meet the 24 × 24 CSS px minimum or its spacing exception.
2.1.1 · 2.1.2 · 2.4.7 · 2.4.11 · 2.5.8Clear names & feedback
Controls expose their name, role and state. Inputs have persistent labels and linked error messages. Async results use status announcements without moving focus.
1.3.1 · 3.3.1 · 3.3.2 · 4.1.2 · 4.1.3Adaptable layouts
Support text resizing to 200% and reflow at 320 CSS px without losing controls or content. Respect reduced-motion preferences and provide text alternatives for meaningful graphics.
1.1.1 · 1.4.4 · 1.4.10 · Motion preferenceRelease checklist: test every state with keyboard and screen readers, zoom and narrow layouts; measure actual foreground/background pairs. Static product screens document visual intent and do not establish app conformance. View the WCAG 2.2 requirements ↗
The final experience
Explore the product screens.
Browse the categories to see setup, recording, notes, settings and theme variants. Select any screen to view it at full size.
Onboarding & auth
3 screens / Click to enlarge
Delivery & reflection
A shipped product.
A clearer design process.
FlyOnTheWall is live on the Mac App Store under Creo IT Private Limited. The delivered work spans the app experience, visual foundations and launch presentation.
What worked
Keeping recording, processing and reading distinct gave each part of the experience a clear purpose. Shared controls kept the light and dark themes consistent.
What I’d improve
I would test permission recovery and provider-key explanations earlier, then check long meetings, accent variation and interrupted recordings with more Indian users.
What I learned
Privacy has to be understandable in the interface. Local recordings, AI processing and sharing need separate explanations, rather than one broad assurance.
Release and publisher details: Apple’s App Store listing. Research examples are documented separately from product delivery; no conversion or adoption uplift is claimed.
