Use Zoom AI Meeting Summaries for Client Meeting Notes and Action Items

What This Does

Zoom's AI automatically generates a written summary of your client meeting and extracts action items. available in your Zoom account within minutes of the call ending, before you've even closed your laptop.

Before You Start

• You have Zoom Pro, Business, or Business Plus (meeting summary is included at no extra cost with eligible paid Zoom Workplace plans)
• You're the meeting host (the summary controls sit with the host)
• You've turned on meeting summaries in your Zoom account settings (one-time setup)
• Note: You must inform meeting participants that AI is being used. Zoom displays this notification automatically when you enable it

Steps

1. Turn on meeting summaries in your Zoom account

Sign in at zoom.us and click Settings in the left sidebar. Look for the meeting summary controls in the AI section and turn on automatic meeting summaries. Also enable Smart Recording if you record meetings. Save your settings. Zoom used to call these features "AI Companion" and dropped that name in 2026, so older help articles and colleagues may still use the old term.

2. Start your meeting and start the summary

Start your Zoom meeting. In the meeting toolbar at the bottom, look for the AI icon (sparkle icon). Hover over it, select the Meeting summary checkbox, then click Start Zoom AI. A small banner appears at the top of the meeting window showing that Zoom AI is summarizing this meeting. Your clients will also see a notification.

3. Run your meeting normally

Have your client meeting exactly as you normally would. Zoom's AI listens, transcribes, and identifies topics, decisions, and action items in real time.

4. Review the summary

Within 2-3 minutes after the meeting ends, you'll receive an email from Zoom with the meeting summary. It's also available in your Zoom account under Reports, in the AI section. The summary includes: meeting duration, attendees, main topics discussed, key decisions, and action items.

5. Use the summary

Copy the action items into your CRM or task manager. Forward the summary to your client as the meeting follow-up (most summaries are already formatted well enough to send after a quick review). If you use Wealthbox or Redtail, paste the summary into the client's record under Notes.

Real Example

Scenario: You just finished a 45-minute estate planning review with the Williams couple over Zoom. You started the meeting summary at the beginning of the call.

What you get in your inbox: A summary including:

• Topics: reviewed current estate plan, discussed beneficiary designations on IRA accounts, explored irrevocable life insurance trust (ILIT) option
• Decisions: will review current beneficiary forms and update within 30 days
• Action items: Advisor, send referral to estate planning attorney by March 25. Clients, gather current beneficiary designation forms from HR.

What you do: Send the summary to the Williams family as your follow-up email with a brief personal opener: "Thank you for the great conversation today, here's a summary of what we covered and next steps."

Tips

• The meeting summary requires an internet-connected recording. it does not work for in-person or phone meetings without Zoom.
• The action items are often remarkably accurate. Double-check ownership ("who said they would do what") as the AI occasionally attributes tasks to the wrong participant.
• If your firm's compliance policy requires meeting archival, the Zoom transcript (also available) serves as your written record.

Tool interfaces change, if a button has moved, look for similar AI/magic/smart meeting options in the same meeting toolbar or account settings area.