Core architecture
A native macOS menu bar utility built around local Whisper models (whisper.cpp) with optional external API hooks for cloud LLM post-processing.
Comparison
Tyne vs Superwhisper
Local transcription done well, with no knowledge layer behind it and cloud API keys waiting the moment you want real cleanup.
At a glance
- Where audio is processed
- SuperwhisperLocal, but cleanup often via cloud API keys
- TyneOn device, including the cleanup pass
- Delay to your cursor
- SuperwhisperLocal decode
- TyneUnder 400ms
- Works offline
- SuperwhisperBaseline transcription only
- TyneYes, fully
- Remembers past notes
- SuperwhisperFlat, unindexed logs
- TyneVector, BM25 and entity-graph index
- Runs multi-step actions
- SuperwhisperNo
- TyneMCP servers and Apple EventKit
- Price
- Superwhisper$8.49/month, or $249.99 lifetime
- TyneUnlimited dictation free forever · Plus $6/month
Superwhisper
Tyne
How Superwhisper works
Under the hood
Captures system audio locally and decodes it using quantized Whisper models directly on Apple Silicon. For advanced cleanup or formatting modes, it routes the raw transcript through user-supplied OpenAI/Anthropic API keys or local small models (such as s1-mini).
What Superwhisper does well
- Local-first execution for baseline transcription.
- Highly configurable custom “modes” — prompt templates mapped to specific hotkeys.
- One-time lifetime purchase option.
Where it breaks down
No knowledge architecture
Historical dictations are saved as flat, unindexed logs. Superwhisper cannot connect related notes, track project specs, or act as an external brain.
Fragmented hybrid stack
Accessing capable LLM cleanup often requires routing text through external cloud API keys, reintroducing privacy concerns and variable token bills.
Passive utility
Purely a text-replacement tool. It cannot query system calendars, read application state, or execute agentic tool calls.
Pricing
Superwhisper
Free tier with small local models; Pro is $8.49/month, $84.99/year, or a $249.99 one-time lifetime license.
Tyne
Unlimited dictation, free forever. Plus is $6/month or $49/year; Pro is $14/month or $119/year.
See full pricingWhy Tyne wins
Superwhisper is a dictation utility; Tyne is an ambient desktop operating system. Tyne couples local Whisper transcription with an on-device 1.5B/3B LLM and a hardware-encrypted SQLite vault (AES-256 via SQLCipher) that indexes your ideas across vector embeddings, BM25 text search, and an entity-attribute-value knowledge graph.
Runs on your Mac. Nothing leaves it.Download for Mac