What is the Spinach Host?
Every meeting that Spinach joins has a single Spinach Host. The host is the person whose settings control how Spinach behaves for that meeting — including the output language, summary format, integrations, and more.
This is important because only the host's settings are applied to the meeting. If you're not the host, your personal settings (like language preferences) won't be used for that meeting, even if you set them up correctly.
How is the host assigned?
Spinach uses the following priority to determine who becomes the host of a meeting:
Meeting organizer (if they use Spinach): If the person who created the calendar event has a Spinach account with automation enabled, they are automatically assigned as the host.
Auto-assigned (if the organizer doesn't use Spinach): When the meeting organizer does not have a Spinach account, Spinach doesn't know who the "official" owner should be. In this case, the host is automatically assigned to one of the Spinach users on that meeting. This means a teammate's settings may end up controlling the meeting instead of yours.
Manual claim: Any meeting member can claim host at any time (see below).
How to check who the host is
Go to your Spinach Dashboard.
Click on the Future Meetings tab.
Next to the meeting title, you may see "Added by [Name]" — this indicates who the current Spinach Host is for that meeting.
How to claim host
If someone else is the host and you want your settings to apply instead:
Go to the Future Meetings tab in your dashboard.
Find the meeting and look for the "Added by [Name]" label next to the title.
Click on it and select Claim Host.
Once you claim host, your settings will be used for all future occurrences of that meeting series. The previous host will receive an email notification about the change.
What settings does the host control?
The Spinach Host's preferences determine the following for the meeting:
Output language (e.g., English, Spanish, German)
Input/spoken language detection
Summary sections and format
Integration destinations (Slack, email, project management tools)
Plan tier features (e.g., video retention period)
FAQ
Why are the settings for my meeting different from my personal settings?
This is the most common question we get. If you configured your settings (for example, setting your output language to Spanish) but the meeting summary comes out in English, it's almost certainly because you are not the Spinach Host for that meeting. Another teammate's settings are being applied instead. Check the Future Meetings tab to see who the host is, and claim host if needed.
I set my language to Spanish but the summary came out in English. Why?
Your personal language settings only apply to meetings where you are the Spinach Host. If a colleague is the host and their settings are configured for English, the summary will be in English regardless of your personal preferences. Claim host on that meeting series to have your language settings take effect.
Why was someone else assigned as host instead of me?
If the meeting organizer (the person who created the calendar invite) uses Spinach, they are automatically the host. If the organizer doesn't use Spinach, the host is auto-assigned among the Spinach users on that meeting. With multiple teammates using Spinach, the chance of someone else being assigned is higher.
Does claiming host affect past meetings?
No. Claiming host only affects future occurrences of the meeting series. Past summaries that were already generated will not change.
Will the previous host be notified if I claim their meeting?
Yes. The previous host will receive an email letting them know that you have claimed host for that meeting series.
Can I claim host if I'm the meeting organizer?
Yes. If you're the calendar organizer but someone else ended up as the Spinach Host, you can always claim it back.
Can someone claim host away from the meeting organizer?
No. If the meeting organizer uses Spinach and is currently the host, other members cannot claim host away from them. This protects the organizer's control over their own meetings.
I have many meetings where I'm not the host. Do I need to claim each one individually?
Currently, yes — you need to claim host on each meeting series individually from the Future Meetings tab. We're working on making this easier in the future.
Does the host affect which plan's features apply to the meeting?
Yes. The host's plan tier determines the features available for that meeting. For example, if the host is on a free/starter plan, the meeting may have limitations like shorter video retention, even if other participants are on a paid plan.
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