We Used Google’s NotebookLM to Create a Podcast Episode
And here’s what it had to say…
Artificial Intelligence is a tool that is rapidly evolving.
At HerSay, we believe in building with empathy—and we also believe in building with the smartest tools available. So when we set out to create a podcast that introduces our mission, our product, and the problem we’re solving, we turned to a new kind of collaborator: Google’s NotebookLM, an experimental AI research and writing assistant.
Our goal was simple: to test the platform and its capabilities.
NotebookLM stood out because it doesn’t just summarize—it contextualizes and connects. By uploading our materials into the tool, we were able to generate a script that sounded like a real conversation between two people who deeply understood the HerSay mission.
NotebookLM generated a podcast episode titled “Why We Built HerSay”. The dialogue covers:
The gender health gap and why it matters
The real experiences of women navigating confusing or dismissive healthcare visits
How HerSay works—from Smart Prep to guided notes and personal health timelines
Testimonials from early users
The founding story of HerSay and the co-founders’ vision for equitable, AI-powered care
The result? A surprisingly thoughtful and engaging conversation between two virtual podcast hosts that accurately captures HerSay’s mission, values, and product vision. Using Google’s NotebookLM, we were able to generate a podcast episode that feels both informative and personal—highlighting real challenges women face in healthcare and how HerSay aims to solve them.
You can find the podcast audio clip below and the transcript at the bottom of this post.
Here’s the podcast that was generated:
Want to try it for yourself? Follow the steps below.
Step 1: Go to NotebookLM.google.com & click “Try NotebookLM”
Step 2: Select “Website” under the Link section
Step 3: Input the URL you want the podcast hosts to pull their discussion points from
Step 4: Wait for the Audio Overview to populate and give it a listen
Here’s the transcript:
Speaker 1:
Welcome to the deep dive. Today we’re looking into something really interesting. HerSay. It’s a new AI-powered health companion, and it has a very specific goal, right?
Speaker 2:
It’s aimed at addressing that feeling that many women experience. You know, that feeling of not quite being heard or supported in medical appointments.
Speaker 1:
Exactly. And for you, our listener, we know you want to grasp these things quickly without getting bogged down.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, information overload is real, so this deep dive is perfect.
Speaker 1:
We’ve dug into HerSay—what it is, why it exists, and really how it aims to empower women when they’re dealing with healthcare.
Speaker 2:
Okay, let’s get right to it then—the core problem HerSay wants to solve.
Speaker 1:
Yeah. I mean, think about it. Have you ever left a doctor’s office feeling, I don’t know, worse? Or just confused?
Speaker 2:
Oh, definitely. Or you describe everything really carefully and you hear, “Oh, it’s probably just stress,” right? Or, “Let’s just monitor it.” Or my personal least favorite: “You’re too young for that.”
Speaker 1:
Yeah. And HerSay really leans into that. They literally say they’re built for the women who’ve had to advocate for themselves too many times.
Speaker 2:
Well, that quote says a lot, doesn’t it?
Speaker 1:
It really does. It points to a real challenge in healthcare for women.
Speaker 2:
Even if they don’t use this specific term, it taps into what many call the gender health gap.
Speaker 1:
Right—precisely. This difference in how research happens, how diagnoses land, how treatment works. It can leave women feeling their concerns aren’t taken seriously enough.
Speaker 2:
So HerSay arrives with this promise: healthcare that listens.
Speaker 1:
Yes, that’s their tagline. They define it as an AI health companion to help women prepare, navigate, and follow up on appointments. More confidence, less confusion.
Speaker 2:
And it sounds like they’re involving users early on.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, apparently over 150 women have already shared experiences to help shape it, and they’re still asking for input via a survey.
Speaker 2:
That’s pretty cool. It shows it’s grounded in actual experiences—not just tech for tech’s sake.
Speaker 1:
Definitely. That community feedback loop seems key. Okay, so let’s break down the features. How does it actually work? First up is Smart Prep.
Speaker 2:
Right. So Smart Prep is designed to tackle that feeling of going in unprepared. It helps you figure out what questions to ask based on your specific symptoms.
Speaker 1:
Ah, so it’s personalized.
Speaker 2:
Exactly. It’s like having a guide beforehand, helping you get your thoughts and questions organized so you feel more ready for that conversation.
Speaker 1:
That sounds incredibly useful. I always think of questions after I leave.
Speaker 2:
Don’t we all? Which leads nicely into the next feature—Guided Notes and Follow-Up.
Speaker 1:
Okay, tell me about that. Sounds like it deals with the “What did they even say?” problem.
Speaker 2:
Totally. Appointments can be a blur of information, right? Easy to forget details. So this lets you log what your doctor is saying kind of in the moment—and crucially, helps you understand the next steps and what you actually need to do.
Speaker 1:
So it combats that feeling of leaving more confused than when you arrived?
Speaker 2:
Pretty much. It aims for clarity on your care plan—keeps you in the loop.
Speaker 1:
And then there’s Your Personal Health Timeline. What’s the benefit there?
Speaker 2:
Well, trying to track symptoms, appointments, results over time—especially with chronic stuff—it gets messy fast.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, notes everywhere, trying to remember dates.
Speaker 2:
Exactly. So the timeline feature aims to bring all that together in one place. Helps you spot patterns, see the bigger picture—but without feeling overwhelmed.
Speaker 1:
Manageable information, right?
Speaker 2:
And they mention things like simple daily check-ins, no complicated jargon, and personalized prompts so you don’t forget key questions during the visit itself.
Speaker 1:
And it looks like there’s more coming soon: recording conversations, AI notes…
Speaker 2:
Yeah, that’s on the roadmap—capturing the conversation (with consent, obviously), and then using AI to generate notes. That could be huge, potentially.
Speaker 1:
Plus things like generating clear follow-up questions, finding helpful research, and even offering built-in encouragement—like a little supportive buddy in your pocket.
Speaker 2:
Kind of. The AI notes idea is interesting too. Could help with recall, maybe even improve communication between visits—if shared.
Speaker 1:
So boiling it down: who is this for? Who are they trying to reach?
Speaker 2:
Well, they’re quite specific. They say it’s for you if you’ve ever ended up Googling your own diagnosis—they’ve been there. Or if you’ve been told “it’s nothing” when it really felt like something.
Speaker 1:
Right—that gut feeling.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, or if you leave appointments with more questions or feeling unsure. And they also specifically call out helping people navigate chronic illness, those tricky invisible symptoms, or big life changes like pregnancy, fertility stuff, menopause…
Speaker 1:
Things that often come with unique healthcare challenges for women.
Speaker 2:
Exactly. It covers a pretty wide range of experiences where women might feel underserved.
Speaker 1:
That makes a lot of sense. Now let’s talk about the why—the origin story. What’s behind HerSay?
Speaker 2:
This part is really powerful. I think the founders say point blank: “We built HerSay because we’ve lived it—the confusion, the gaslighting, the self-advocacy.”
Speaker 1:
Wow. So it’s personal—deeply personal, it seems. They didn’t just see a market gap. They felt the problem themselves, and they talked to quote “dozens of women with the same story.”
Speaker 2:
That really grounds it, doesn’t it? It’s not just an app.
Speaker 1:
Right. They frame it as a movement toward healthcare that listens. It’s quite ambitious.
Speaker 2:
And who are the people driving this?
Speaker 1:
The co-founders—yes, Rebecca and Emma Coulter. Rebecca is described as an experienced entrepreneur and strategist, really focused on women’s health—over a decade in tech and healthcare, building data-driven tools.
Speaker 2:
Okay, so she brings the tech and strategy side—and a clear mission: closing that gender gap in medicine by empowering women and gender-diverse individuals. Her background includes sales ops, digital transformation, human-centered design. A lot of relevant experience.
Speaker 1:
Yeah, and she’s passionate about using AI and storytelling for more personalized, equitable care. She’s also a speaker, advisor—and a mom.
Speaker 2:
Got it. And Emma Coulter?
Speaker 1:
Emma’s positioned as the COO—the operational force. Her expertise is in health system strategy and user-centered design, specifically for digital tools for women and gender-diverse people.
Speaker 2:
So making it work on the ground. Making it accessible.
Speaker 1:
Exactly. She ensures it’s trusted, accessible, empowering. Her background is in digital health, public health, organizational change—brings that sort of systems-level thinking.
Speaker 2:
It sounds like a really strong combination of skills.
Speaker 1:
It does. Complementary expertise—but united by that core mission: giving women the tools to take control of their healthcare journeys.
Speaker 2:
That mission comes through loud and clear.
Speaker 1:
Okay, what about proof? Are people actually finding it helpful? Any early feedback?
Speaker 2:
Yeah, they share a few testimonials on their site. Quite compelling, actually.
Speaker 1:
Like what?
Speaker 2:
Well, there’s Lauren, 34, who says: “I’ve been to eight specialists. This is the tool I wish I had from the start.”
Speaker 1:
Eight specialists. Yeah—wow. That says a lot about a potentially fragmented or difficult journey.
Speaker 2:
It really does. It suggests HerSay could potentially help streamline things for people with complex cases.
Speaker 1:
Okay, what else?
Speaker 2:
Shivani, 39, says: “It’s like bringing an advocate with me to every appointment.”
Speaker 1:
Ooh. I like that. That feeling of having backup—someone or something on your side.
Speaker 2:
Right. That idea of an advocate is powerful. Feeling supported and heard can make such a difference in how you experience care.
Speaker 1:
Definitely. Any others?
Speaker 2:
One more—from Jen, 41: “I don’t want my daughter to go through what I did. HerSay is the future.”
Speaker 1:
That one hits hard. It speaks to that hope for systemic change—for a better future experience.
Speaker 2:
Absolutely. It frames HerSay not just as a tool for now, but as part of building a more equitable, more supportive healthcare system down the line.
Speaker 1:
And the name itself—HerSay—pretty direct.
Speaker 2:
Very intentional. As they put it: “Her health, her voice, her say.”
Speaker 1:
Simple. Powerful. Encapsulates the whole mission.
Speaker 2:
Exactly—ensuring women’s concerns are heard and they have agency in their care. They also mention privacy and terms of service, of course—which is crucial for anything handling health data.
Speaker 1:
Good point. And they mention their location too.
Speaker 2:
Yeah, they’re based in Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario, and acknowledged the traditional territory of the Haudenosaunee, Anishinaabe, and Neutral peoples.
Speaker 1:
Okay, good to know. So wrapping this up—what’s the main thing listeners should take away about HerSay?
Speaker 2:
I think the key takeaway is that HerSay is this AI companion specifically built to empower women in healthcare settings.
Speaker 1:
Right—tackling that feeling of being unheard, unprepared…
Speaker 2:
Exactly—by offering personalized prep, support during the appointment, and clear follow-up guidance. It’s about giving women tools.
Speaker 1:
Tools for more confidence, better information, and ultimately—more control over their health.
Speaker 2:
Well said. And if this sounds interesting—if you want to know more—get on the waitlist. The place to go is hersay.ca. That’s H-E-R-S-A-Y dot ca. hersay.ca.
Speaker 1:
Simple enough. So a final thought to leave you with: just imagine for a moment—how different could your doctor’s visits feel if you had a dedicated companion like this?
Speaker 2:
Someone or something helping ensure your voice is central to your care. It’s definitely something to think about as we all look toward—hopefully—a more equitable healthcare future.