Open Wispr

Open Wispr is a free voice dictation tool for macOS that transcribes speech entirely on the user's own Mac. The user holds a key, speaks, and releases it, and the transcribed text is typed at the cursor in whatever app has focus, including editors, browsers, terminals, Slack and email. Transcription uses whisper.cpp with Metal acceleration on Apple Silicon, so audio never leaves the machine. According to the site, audio is recorded to a temporary file, transcribed locally and then deleted, with no accounts, no telemetry and no network requests. A waveform appears in the menu bar while recording, and a Copy Last Dictation option recovers text if focus was missed. Settings cover the hotkey (the Globe key by default), the model size and the language, and are changed from the terminal. The default base.en model is a 142 MB download on first launch, and Whisper's multilingual models support 99 languages. It does not include AI rewriting or formatting features. Setup is guided and asks for Accessibility and Microphone permissions, and it installs through Homebrew rather than as a dragged app bundle. It is aimed at Mac users who want a private alternative to cloud dictation services. The site compares it with VoiceInk, Wispr Flow, Superwhisper, MacWhisper and Apple Dictation. Open Wispr is released under the MIT license and is free, with an optional tip link for supporters.