Can I dictate straight into my editor and terminal?

Keebye inserts into focused non-secure fields. Paste mode uses terminal-aware chunking; enable type mode for SSH, tmux, non-QWERTY layouts, or other paste-hostile targets.

Is it safe to use around proprietary code?

That is the point of on-device transcription. Your speech is turned into text locally, with no telemetry and no audio uploaded by Keebye. The target app receives the text you insert or submit.

Will it mangle identifiers, snake_case, or CLI flags?

The custom dictionary can improve recurring repo names, packages, and flags, but identifiers still need review. Dictation suits prose around code better than symbol-dense code itself.

Does it refuse to type into password prompts?

Yes. Keebye detects secure and password fields and declines to insert there, so a dictation aimed at the wrong window will not spill a token or secret into a credential box.

What model handles non-English or mixed-language work?

Parakeet covers English by default. Opt into Canary and you add 24 more languages, which helps if your comments or team chat are not in English.

Voice Dictation for Developers on macOS

Dictate commit messages, PR descriptions, code comments, and prompts by voice — on-device speech-to-text that keeps proprietary code on your Mac.

Why developers dictate the prose around the code

One change creates a trail of prose: the commit message explains why, the PR description explains scope, and the reviewer reply explains the trade-off you kept. The code may already be done while those three human-language tasks still wait.

Speak it. A commit body is faster said than typed, a PR description comes out in a couple of spoken paragraphs, and the terminal where your agent lives takes dictated input as readily as a text field. Keebye is not for hammering out symbol-heavy code by voice — it is for the human-language layer wrapped around it, which is where the hours quietly go.

How it works

Focus the field — editor, terminal, review form — hold Right ⌘, and speak. On release the text is inserted where your cursor is. Paste mode uses terminal-aware chunking; type mode is an explicit setting for SSH, tmux, non-QWERTY layouts, and other paste-hostile targets. Secure fields are refused outright.

Transcription is fully local. Parakeet downloads once and then works offline, with no telemetry, which is what makes it usable against proprietary code: you can narrate a private architecture or a client's repo and none of it is uploaded. A local history keeps your recent text for thirty days and then deletes it automatically.

Setup in two minutes

Grant Accessibility and microphone access on first run, choose your hotkey — Right ⌘, Fn, or Right ⌥ — and switch on launch-at-login so it is ready in every session. That is the install.

Then invest a minute in the custom dictionary: load recurring repo names, service names, framework terms, and CLI flags to reduce corrections. Review identifiers before they become commands or published text.

Limits, honestly

Dictation is a poor fit for typing code itself — brackets, operators, and camelCase are slow to speak and easy to garble. Use it for messages, comments, docs, and prompts, and let your editor and AI tools handle the symbols, the way a vibe coder leans on voice for intent and the tool for syntax.

It has no editor or Git integration; it types text and you drive everything else, including in Cursor. Text appears when you release the hotkey rather than streaming as you talk — transcription is batch. And Keebye is macOS only.

Take one finished change through the whole trail: dictate the commit rationale, reuse the thought in the PR description, then answer the first reviewer question without reopening the code. That is the coordination layer behind Driving Claude Code with your voice. To decide whether a dedicated app is warranted, use the workday test in Keebye alternatives — and if pain or tendon strain is what's driving you to voice, start with the dictation for RSI guide instead.