WhisprDeskTranscribe audio files on your Mac, offline
WhisprDesk transcribes audio files on your Mac without sending them anywhere. You open an audio file, and the transcription runs on-device using Whisper or NVIDIA Parakeet, so the audio never leaves your machine: no upload, no cloud queue, no account. That makes it a fit for recordings you would not want on someone else's server, like interviews, meetings, and personal notes. Because the work happens locally on Apple Silicon, there is no per-minute cloud bill and no file sent over the network. If you want cleaned-up text afterward, an optional step can tidy the transcript using your own OpenAI, Anthropic, or Google API key, so even that runs on your terms. WhisprDesk is launching soon for macOS 12 and later.
How on-device transcription works
WhisprDesk runs the speech-to-text model on your own Mac. You pick one of two engines, Whisper or NVIDIA Parakeet, and the audio is processed locally rather than uploaded to a server. Nothing about the recording is sent over the network to be transcribed.
Running locally means transcription works without an internet connection once the app is installed, and there is no usage meter counting the minutes you process.
What file types can I transcribe?
WhisprDesk handles the common audio and video container formats: mp3, wav, m4a, webm, ogg, flac, aac, mp4, wma, and opus. You open the file and the transcription runs on your machine.
Is my audio uploaded anywhere?
No. Transcription is on-device, so the audio file is never uploaded for processing. There is no account and no telemetry. The only time anything leaves your Mac is if you choose the optional AI cleanup step, which sends text (not your audio) directly to the AI provider whose key you supply.
Optional AI cleanup with your own key
After a transcript is produced locally, you can optionally have an AI model tidy it up, fix punctuation, or reformat it. That step uses your own OpenAI, Anthropic, or Google API key, so the request goes from your Mac directly to the provider on your account. It is entirely optional; transcription itself needs no key.
Frequently asked questions
- Does WhisprDesk transcription work offline?
- Yes. Transcription runs on-device with Whisper or NVIDIA Parakeet, so it works without an internet connection once the app is installed.
- Do I need an account to transcribe?
- No. WhisprDesk has no accounts and no sign-in. Transcription runs locally on your Mac.
- Is there a per-minute cost to transcribe?
- No. Because transcription happens on your own machine, there is no cloud usage meter. WhisprDesk is a one-time purchase with no subscription; only the optional AI cleanup uses your own API key, billed by your provider.
- What are the system requirements?
- WhisprDesk runs on Apple Silicon Macs (M1 or later) on macOS 12 (Monterey) and later.