FluidVoice
Open-source macOS dictation app with local speech models and optional local AI enhancement. Useful as the local-first alternative signal to cloud dictation products such as Wispr Flow.
What it is
FluidVoice is a native macOS voice-to-text app that types into any app through a global hotkey, live preview overlay, menu bar controls, and accessibility APIs. The repository frames it as local-first dictation: speech models can run on-device, AI enhancement is optional, and the core app is GPL-3.0. Source: FluidVoice README, 2026-07-04
The June 2026 bookmark matters because it is a heavy-user switch signal: @sdhilip says he dictated 44,414 words over six months with Wispr Flow, then switched after trying FluidVoice because it ran locally on Mac, needed no API key for local correction, handled slang well, and avoided a subscription. Treat this as a product-market signal, not as a universal replacement for every dictation workflow. Source: X/@sdhilip, 2026-06-22
Source snapshot
As of 2026-07-04, altic-dev/FluidVoice is GPL-3.0, default branch main, repo HEAD fe12dee006bb2d70098fe7678d77ac0e61bd9ac4, pushed 2026-07-04T09:25:25Z, with 6,069 stars, 372 forks, and 94 open issues. The current release tag and Homebrew cask version are v1.6.1; Homebrew installs with brew install --cask fluidvoice and requires macOS 15+. Source: GitHub API, git ls-remote, Homebrew cask API, 2026-07-04
Local-first boundary
FluidVoice's open-source app and local speech stack are the durable part for Kevin's wiki. The README also names Fluid Intelligence as a separate privately maintained local AI runtime for formatting, capitalization, and post-processing. That means "open source" applies to the app, while the advanced local enhancement layer is not fully source-open today. Record that split whenever comparing it to paid/cloud dictation tools. Source: FluidVoice README, 2026-07-04
Use FluidVoice when the need is personal Mac dictation, local control, and low subscription overhead. Do not treat it as the answer for cross-platform team dictation, meeting intelligence, shared notes, or CRM/workflow automation; those are different product categories.
Timeline
- 2026-06-22 | @sdhilip posts a high-signal switch story: after six months of heavy Wispr Flow use, FluidVoice's local Mac dictation was good enough to cancel the paid plan. 3,894 likes, 9,881 bookmarks. Source: X/@sdhilip, 2026-06-22
- 2026-07-04 | Dedicated page created during X bookmark artifact review; source snapshot recorded at
v1.6.1, GPL-3.0, 6,069 stars, 372 forks, 94 open issues, and Homebrew caskfluidvoiceversion1.6.1. Source: GitHub/Homebrew checks, 2026-07-04