Why I built Talkativ
I built Talkativ for my mum.
She is a high-energy professional: sharp, driven, always moving. Then she suffered a massive stroke. She had to relearn how to walk, how to talk and how to balance. The woman who once led boardroom meetings now struggled with a keyboard. I watched her type, one slow, painful letter at a time, and I saw her frustration.
So I built Talkativ for her. Now she uses it every day. She can write emails, send messages and express herself again, just by speaking. It gave her some of her independence back.
– Danesh, founder. You can read more on the About page.
What it does
Click into a text box in any app and press Ctrl + Space on Windows, ⌥ Option + Space on a Mac. Say what you want to write, at your own pace, and press it again when you finish. Your words appear where your cursor is, with punctuation and capital letters added, and “um” and “uh” left out.
There is no key to hold down, and no voice training. If the keyboard is hard work, click the mic dot at the bottom of the screen instead. It does exactly what the shortcut does. The dot is red while Talkativ listens, blue while it works, and green when your words have landed.
Speech to text assistive technology, kept simple
If you are looking for speech to text assistive technology, here is what Talkativ is, plainly:
- A dictation app for Mac and Windows
- It works in any app where you can type, such as email, messages and documents
- A short guided setup, then nothing to configure for each app
- Vocabulary, for the names of family, friends and places, so they are more likely to come out right
Talkativ is not medical advice or a medical product. It is a tool that some people find makes writing easier when typing is hard.
Hands free typing, and where it stops
You may be looking for hands free typing, or hands free computer use. Talkativ is not fully hands-free, and it is better to say so now.
You still start and stop each dictation with a shortcut or a click, and you choose where the cursor goes. After that, your hands can rest while you speak. If you need full voice control of your computer, such as opening apps and moving the pointer, you will need other software alongside this.
For families and carers
If you are setting this up for someone else, a few things help:
- Do the guided setup together, then try one short message.
- Add family names to Vocabulary first, because names are easy for any dictation app to get wrong.
- Start with short sentences. Longer ones come when they feel comfortable.
- Keep in mind that it can mishear words. Read the result before sending.
Check with a speech therapist or doctor about anything to do with recovery. Talkativ is not a replacement for either.
Limits to know about
- It needs an internet connection and does not work offline.
- It can mishear words. It does not know what you meant to say.
- The words appear a moment after you press stop, not while you speak.
- A noisy room, or a microphone far away, makes mistakes more likely.
- It does not read text aloud.
Try it free
Free is 2,200 words a week, reset every 7 days, with Vocabulary and Advanced formatting included. Advanced formatting is off by default. With it on, Talkativ also writes lists, amounts and email addresses in the form you would have typed. See what the free plan covers.
Related reading
If you have a different reason to type less, see typing with RSI or apps for dyslexia. To see Talkativ working, go to the Talkativ homepage.
Download Talkativ and try writing one message.