How to Clean Up Meeting Notes with AI Using N8n

Workflows > New Workflow

Create New Workflow

Start a fresh N8n workflow for the meeting notes automation. You'll build a chain that captures Slack messages, processes them through OpenAI, and posts the cleaned results back.

1. 1Click 'New Workflow' from the N8n dashboard
2. 2Name it 'Meeting Notes Cleanup'
3. 3Click 'Save' to create the workflow

Add Node > Trigger > Slack Trigger

Add Slack Trigger

Replace the manual trigger with a Slack message trigger. This will fire whenever someone posts a message containing your cleanup keyword in a designated channel.

1. 1Delete the default trigger node
2. 2Click the '+' button to add a new node
3. 3Search for 'Slack' and select 'Slack Trigger'
4. 4Choose 'On Message' from the trigger options

Slack Trigger > Credentials > Create New

Configure Slack Connection

Connect N8n to your Slack workspace with proper bot permissions. The bot needs to read messages and post replies in your designated channels.

1. 1Click 'Create New' under Slack credentials
2. 2Paste your Slack Bot Token (starts with xoxb-)
3. 3Test the connection
4. 4Select your target channel from the dropdown
5. 5Set 'Trigger on' to 'Mention' or specific keyword like 'cleanup:'

Add Node > Logic > IF

Add Message Filter

Filter incoming messages to only process ones that contain meeting notes. This prevents the workflow from running on every casual message.

1. 1Add an 'IF' node after the Slack trigger
2. 2Set condition to 'String' contains
3. 3Use expression: {{ $json.text.includes('cleanup:') }}
4. 4Connect the 'true' output to continue the workflow

Add Node > Data > Code

Extract Meeting Notes

Parse the raw meeting notes from the Slack message text. Strip out the trigger keyword and any Slack formatting to send clean text to OpenAI.

1. 1Add a 'Code' node after the IF true branch
2. 2Set language to JavaScript
3. 3Write code to extract text after 'cleanup:' keyword
4. 4Remove Slack user mentions and channel references
5. 5Return cleaned text as 'meeting_notes' field

Add Node > AI > OpenAI

Configure OpenAI Node

Add OpenAI to process the raw notes into structured format. You'll use GPT-4 with a specific prompt that formats notes consistently every time.

1. 1Add 'OpenAI' node from the AI section
2. 2Select 'Chat' operation
3. 3Choose 'gpt-4' model (not gpt-3.5-turbo for better formatting)
4. 4Create new OpenAI credentials with your API key

OpenAI > Messages > Add Message

Write Formatting Prompt

Create a detailed prompt that tells GPT-4 exactly how to structure the meeting notes. Include examples of the output format you want.

1. 1In the OpenAI messages field, add a system message
2. 2Write prompt: 'Format these meeting notes into: ## Summary (2-3 sentences), ## Key Points (bullet list), ## Action Items (with owner and due date), ## Next Steps. Use markdown formatting.'
3. 3Add user message with: {{ $json.meeting_notes }}
4. 4Set max_tokens to 1000

Add Node > Communication > Slack

Add Slack Reply Node

Post the formatted notes back to Slack in the same channel or thread. This creates a clean, structured version right where your team can see it.

1. 1Add another Slack node after OpenAI
2. 2Select 'Send Message' operation
3. 3Use same Slack credentials as the trigger
4. 4Set channel to {{ $node['Slack Trigger'].json['channel'] }}
5. 5Set text to {{ $json.choices[0].message.content }}

Node Settings > Continue on Fail

Add Error Handling

Handle cases where OpenAI fails or returns malformed responses. This prevents the workflow from silently breaking when the API has issues.

1. 1Click the OpenAI node settings gear icon
2. 2Enable 'Continue on Fail'
3. 3Add an IF node after OpenAI to check for errors
4. 4Route failures to a Slack message: 'Notes cleanup failed - please try again'

Workflow > Execute

Test with Real Notes

Run a complete test using actual messy meeting notes. This reveals formatting issues and prompt problems before you go live.

1. 1Post 'cleanup: [paste real meeting notes]' in your test Slack channel
2. 2Watch the workflow execution in N8n
3. 3Check that formatted notes appear in Slack within 30 seconds
4. 4Verify action items and formatting look correct

Drop this into an n8n Code node.

// Clean Slack formatting before OpenAI
const rawText = $json.text || '';
const cleanText = rawText

// Clean Slack formatting before OpenAI
const rawText = $json.text || '';
const cleanText = rawText
  .replace(/<@U\w+>/g, '[User]') // Remove user mentions
  .replace(/<#C\w+\|[^>]+>/g, '[Channel]') // Remove channel links
  .replace(/cleanup:\s*/i, '') // Remove trigger keyword
  .trim();

return [{ json: { meeting_notes: cleanText } }];