Google Recorder

What

Recorder is Google's first official audio recorder for Android. The app uses AI to transcribe your audio, so you can easily search, edit, and share. It does it all on-device, so your audio stays private.


Originally a Pixel exclusive, the app was demoed on-stage to press and consumers at the 2019 Google Hardware event. It quickly became a marquee feature and differentiator for the Pixel 4 phone.

My role

  • Led a team of 5 creatives and product marketers working on the product's launch.

  • Defined privacy as a core pillar of the product positioning based on insights about power users or audio recorders (i.e., journalists).

  • Successfully advocated for privacy-preserving features, partnering with Product and Engineering stakeholders to weigh trade-offs between privacy and convenience for users.

  • Crafted the product's privacy messaging and worked with UX writers to incorporate it in-product.

  • Briefed and led creative teams to craft launch assets and the script for the product announcement at the 2019 Google Hardware Event.

Outcomes

  • Press:

    • CNN | "The biggest surprise of Google’s Pixel event is a transcription app"

    • Slate | "Pixel’s added layer of privacy is worth it"

    • Tom's Guide | "Few apps are quite as useful and reliable as Google Recorder"

    • Wall Street Journal | "Pixel 4's Transcription App vs. World's Fastest-Talking Woman"

    • Mashable | "Google Pixel 4 hands-on: Pikachu is fun, but the Recorder app is even cooler"

    • USA Today | "This is the feature I was most excited about"

    • Gizmodo | "The New Pixel 4 Real-Time Transcription App Is Amazing"

  • Awards: Tom's Guide's Best App of the Year; One Show Merit in Utility Category; D&AD Graphite Pencil in Digital Design

  • Metrics: Download and usage data is confidential