AI Dictation for Mac: Speech to Text Formatted for the App

AI dictation is speech-to-text plus a formatting pass: you speak, the app transcribes, and a language model shapes the text for where you are writing, so an email looks like an email and a chat message looks like a chat message. On Mac, Avaan does this with Modes, a Pro feature that works through a global hotkey in whatever app is in front.

Apple's built-in Dictation does the first half well. This guide explains the second half, shows what Modes change, and says when you can skip all of it.

What AI adds to plain dictation

Plain dictation returns what you said. If you say a run of sentences with no punctuation, you may get a block of text you then have to split, capitalize, and tone down. Apple's Dictation adds some punctuation automatically in supported languages, and you can speak marks and say "new paragraph" (Apple's guide). That is often all you need.

An AI pass goes further. It can:

• remove filler like "um" and false starts
• break a ramble into sentences and paragraphs
• pick the tone and layout that suit the destination
• keep technical terms intact when you write code comments

Here is the same spoken input, first as plain text and then formatted by the Email Mode.

You say: "hey sarah thanks for sending over the proposal i had a chance to review it and i think we should move forward with option two let me know if you have questions"

Plain transcript:

hey sarah thanks for sending over the proposal i had a chance to review it and i think we should move forward with option two let me know if you have questions

Email Mode:

Hi Sarah,

Thanks for sending over the proposal. I had a chance to review it, and I think we should move forward with option two.

Let me know if you have questions.

The output is an illustration of the kind of change a Mode makes, not a guarantee of exact wording. A language model decides, so results vary, and you should read what it wrote before you send it.

The built-in Modes

A Mode is how a dictation's text gets formatted. Avaan has these built in:

You can also create custom Modes with your own instructions and vocabulary. Start with Auto, which handles an email in Mail and a message in Slack differently. Switch to a fixed Mode when you want the same shape every time, and use Off when you want the words exactly as spoken.

Cloud and local transcription

Avaan has two ways to turn speech into text on Mac, and the choice changes where your audio goes.

Pro cloud transcription is the main experience. It sends your audio to the speech providers listed on the subprocessors page, works on iPhone and Mac, and returns clean text quickly. Pro includes 10 hours of cloud transcription each month and costs $7.99 a month or $79.99 a year. Every account starts with a 7-day Pro trial, no card. When the trial ends or a plan is cancelled, cloud features pause, your Notes stay readable, and local transcription on Mac stays free.

Free local transcription runs on your Mac. It needs no account, works offline, and that audio stays on the Mac. It transcribes without Modes. Pick it when you are offline, when you want no account, or when a rough transcript is enough.

Apple's Dictation or an AI app?

Apple's Dictation is free and built in, so try it first with our setup guide. Move to an app when you are fixing formatting by hand more than you are writing.

Use cases where Modes help

• Email. Dictate a reply in Mail with Email or Auto and get a salutation, paragraphs, and sign-off.
• Chat. Dictate into Slack or Messages and keep it short and casual.
• Notes and drafts. Speak a first draft in Notes Mode and edit the whole thing afterward. Writers often draft this way.
• Code comments and docs. Code Mode keeps function names and technical terms as spoken.

For setting up a hotkey and building the habit, see the dictation workflow guide.

Try it

Download Avaan for Mac and start with local transcription, or start the 7-day Pro trial to try Modes and cloud transcription. Pricing lists what is included. On iPhone, Avaan is a Notes app: record a Note and it syncs to your account, and with Pro you can turn on memories to ask questions across your Notes.