An AI overlay is an always-on-top window that places an AI chat or answer panel over whatever app you're using, so you can ask questions without switching windows. Most open with a global hotkey, can be made semi-transparent, and accept screenshots. Some also hide from screen sharing, which is why they're sometimes called invisible AI.
How does an AI overlay work?
Under the hood it's an ordinary desktop window with a few unusual settings. The typical parts:
- Always on top. The window stays above other apps, including full-screen meeting windows, so it doesn't get buried when you click elsewhere.
- A global hotkey. One shortcut shows and hides it from any app. Without this, an overlay is just another window.
- Opacity and click-through. You can see the app behind it, and in click-through mode your mouse clicks pass through the overlay to that app.
- Screen input. A screenshot hotkey sends what's on your monitor to the model, so you can ask about an error, a chart or a document without copying text.
- A model connection. Either the app's own AI, your API key (see BYOK), or a web AI like ChatGPT loaded inside the window.
What makes an AI overlay "invisible"?
On Windows, an app can ask the operating system to leave one of its windows out of screenshots, recordings and screen shares. The call is SetWindowDisplayAffinity with the WDA_EXCLUDEFROMCAPTURE flag, available since Windows 10 version 2004. The window stays on your monitor, and anything that captures the screen through Windows sees whatever is behind it instead. That's the feature people mean by "invisible AI" or a "screen-share-safe" overlay. The full mechanism is in our entry on screen capture exclusion.
Invisible has limits, and an honest overlay maker will tell you them. A phone or camera pointed at the screen sees the window. Hardware capture cards and some remote-desktop setups sit outside Windows' capture path. Microsoft itself says the flag isn't a security feature. Treat "invisible" as "not in your screen share", never as "undetectable".
AI overlay vs sidebar, extension and meeting bot
| Works over any app | In your screen share? | Hears the meeting? | |
|---|---|---|---|
| AI overlay | Yes | Not if capture-excluded | No, unless you dictate |
| Built-in sidebar (Copilot in Word, Gemini in Gmail) | Only its own app | Yes, if you share that app | No |
| Browser extension | Only the browser | Yes, if you share the browser | Some read meeting captions |
| Meeting bot | Only the meeting | Shows as a participant | Yes, records the call |
What are AI overlays used for?
Anything where switching windows costs you. Asking a question during a video call without leaving it. Keeping speaker notes or a script visible while presenting. Pasting a stack trace while pair programming. Looking up an answer while a customer waits on a support call. Rehearsing interview answers next to the job description. The common thread is that your attention needs to stay on another app.
What an AI overlay is not
The phrase gets used for a few unrelated things, which is why searches for it look so mixed.
- Anti-AI overlays are image filters or noise layers some artists add to their pictures in the hope of disrupting AI training. Nothing to do with assistants.
- Google's AI Overviews are AI-written summaries at the top of search results, not a desktop window.
- Game overlays like the Xbox Game Bar are always-on-top panels too, and some now include AI features, but they're built around games.
- AI voice overlays usually means AI-generated voiceover added to a video.
AuraCloak as an example
AuraCloak is an AI overlay for Windows 10 (version 2004 or later) and Windows 11. Ctrl + Alt + Space shows it, Alt + S screenshots all monitors into the chat, Alt + C toggles click-through, and Alt + V starts push-to-talk voice input. It connects to OpenAI, Claude, Gemini, GitHub Copilot, Azure OpenAI or a custom endpoint, or runs ChatGPT and Claude.ai in browser mode with your normal login. The window is excluded from screen capture by default, and you can switch that off in Settings. It doesn't record or listen to calls.
An AI overlay for Windows that stays on top and out of your screen share. $9/mo or $49 once.
Get AuraCloakFAQ
What is an invisible AI overlay?
It's an AI overlay window that the operating system leaves out of screenshots, recordings and screen shares. On Windows this uses SetWindowDisplayAffinity with WDA_EXCLUDEFROMCAPTURE. You see the window; people watching your Zoom or Teams share don't. A camera pointed at your screen still sees it.
Is an AI overlay the same as a browser extension?
No. A browser extension only works inside the browser and shows up whenever you share that browser. An AI overlay is a separate desktop window that floats over any app, including meeting apps, IDEs and spreadsheets, and can be excluded from screen capture.
Do AI overlays record my meetings?
Not by design. An overlay answers what you type, paste, screenshot or dictate. Some products also capture meeting audio, so check before you install one. AuraCloak doesn't record or listen to calls; its voice input is push-to-talk from your own microphone.
Are AI overlays available on Mac?
Some are. Overlay apps exist for macOS, Windows or both, and macOS has its own window-sharing settings. AuraCloak is Windows-only: Windows 10 version 2004 or later and Windows 11, x64.