BetterWispr, a free and open-source dictation application for macOS 14+, has been released on Hacker News. The app allows users to speak in any application by holding Option+Space, offering local speech processing that stays entirely on the user's Mac. It supports nine built-in models including Apple speech, Parakeet, and Whisper, catering to 25 European languages and Japanese.
Key features include style customization for different applications, cleanup options for speech disfluencies, and voice commands. The application focuses on privacy by processing speech locally, requiring no account or cloud fallback after model installation. It includes meeting transcription capabilities, dictation history management, and insights into speaking patterns.
BetterWispr is Apache 2.0 licensed and available via GitHub Releases with Sparkle updates. The app enables typing where the cursor is positioned and learns user-specific terms over time.
Source: Hacker News · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing