Briefy vs Recast

Briefy turns lengthy content into structured summaries and stores them in a knowledge base for later review. It can produce overviews, tables, mindmaps and timelines from websites, videos, email threads, podcasts and PDFs. Users can save, review, search, ask questions about and share briefs, and navigate back to the source material to check details. Briefy supports multiple languages and inline translations. Its Gmail feature is described as an email copilot for skimming threads and composing replies. The product is available as an extension, on iOS and macOS, and on the web. PDF summarization requires Premium or Ultra, with respective file-size caps of 20MB and 50MB; YouTube summaries currently require subtitles. The free plan lists 30 credits per month. Premium is listed at $89.88 a year, billed annually; Ultra is $167.88 a year, billed annually. The pricing page says new subscriptions and credit purchases are no longer available, and both paid plans are marked unavailable for new subscriptions.

Recast uses Claude AI to turn PDFs, article URLs, text, or topics into platform-ready content. It offers nine formats, including social posts, video scripts, newsletters, blog outlines, takeaways, and hooks. Study Mode creates study guides, slide decks, flashcards, quizzes, and citations from course material. Tone and reading-level controls are available; the Free Beta also includes Brand Voice and translation into 10 languages. Free Beta costs nothing, allows 10 generations per day across nine formats and five input types, and requires your own Anthropic API key. Anthropic charges usage directly, typically 0.05–$0.30 depending on length. Recast says keys, history, and browser-stored data remain on your device, while inputs go directly from the browser to Anthropic. URL pages are fetched through allorigins.win. Flashcards export to Anki and Quizlet. Planned Pro costs $15 a month and lists unlimited generations, no API key, bulk upload up to 10 files, priority generation, and founder support.