Live system-audio transcription and translation for macOS, AirTranslate captures Mac audio playback, converts it into real-time transcripts, and displays them as floating captions. It targets users needing subtitles for meetings, lectures, videos, and streams, offering a seamless alternative to microphone routing. The app provides a local-first experience using Apple frameworks, with an optional, powerful GPT mode for enhanced transcription and translation via OpenAI.

How It Works

AirTranslate captures Mac system audio directly using Apple's ScreenCaptureKit. It offers a baseline experience leveraging Apple Speech for transcription and Apple Translation for language conversion. For advanced use cases, an optional GPT mode can be enabled, utilizing OpenAI's realtime models when the user provides their own API key. The application presents transcripts and translations side-by-side in a live workspace or as a floating caption overlay, ensuring readability. OpenAI API keys are securely stored in the macOS Keychain, and all saved transcripts are plain text files.

Quick Start & Requirements

• Install: Download the latest open-source build from GitHub Releases as a DMG or ZIP file.
• Prerequisites: macOS 26.0 or later, Swift 6.2 or later, a Mac supporting system-audio capture, and availability of Apple Speech and Apple Translation frameworks. An OpenAI API key is optional for GPT mode.
• Setup: For Apple Mode, download necessary Apple Translation Language Packs via System Settings > General > Language & Region > Translation Languages.
• Links: Guide Site, Download page.

Highlighted Details

• Direct system-audio capture via ScreenCaptureKit.
• Optional GPT mode with OpenAI Realtime transcription and translation.
• Floating caption window for subtitles above other applications.
• OpenAI API keys stored securely in macOS Keychain (kSecAttrAccessibleAfterFirstUnlockThisDeviceOnly).
• Saved transcripts are plain .txt files in ~/Library/Application Support/AirTranslate/Transcripts/.
• Multiple processing modes: Apple, GPT, Transcribe Only, Realtime Translation Only.

Maintenance & Community

This repository does not explicitly mention notable contributors, sponsorships, or community channels like Discord or Slack in the provided README.

Licensing & Compatibility

AirTranslate is released under the Apache License 2.0. This permissive license generally allows for commercial use and integration into closed-source projects.

Limitations & Caveats

Apple basic-mode source-language auto-detect is temporarily disabled due to ongoing improvements in language-switch handling. The provided DMG/ZIP builds are ad-hoc signed; macOS may display an "unidentified developer" warning on first launch, requiring manual user override. Developer ID signing and notarization are planned for future distribution. Apple Mode translation requires specific language packs to be downloaded manually by the user.