Ora

Private voice dictation, by design.

Ora gives you a voice-to-text workflow with a local path, clear cloud choices, and controls over the information that leaves your machine.

Choose an on-device path when you need one

Ora supports local transcription through Whisper, Parakeet, and Apple Speech. When you use an on-device engine, transcription can remain entirely on your Mac. This is useful when you want an offline workflow or simply prefer to keep that work close to your computer.

Cloud transcription is a direct choice

Sometimes a streaming provider or a particular cloud model is the better option. Ora makes that a deliberate configuration choice: you select the provider and use your own API key. Ora does not act as a proxy for cloud transcription; audio goes directly to the provider you chose.

Keep sensitive controls close to macOS

Cloud API keys are stored in macOS Keychain rather than plain files or Ora servers.
Screen, clipboard, and selected-text context are opt-in.
Ora does not phone home for activity analytics.
Audio and transcript cleanup are configurable on your terms.

Privacy does not mean a reduced workflow

You can still dictate into the Mac apps where you work, use custom vocabulary, and choose Modes for different kinds of writing. The goal is not a one-size-fits-all privacy claim. It is giving you a clear, practical choice about how each voice-to-text workflow runs.