Local-first voice dictation for macOS. Hold a shortcut, speak, and paste into any app. Native Rust, on-device speech recognition, and a Linux beta.
hex (anomalyco/hex)
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hex README
The project's README from github.com/anomalyco/hex. As one markdown file: README.md.
HEX
Speak. It appears.
Local-first voice dictation, built in Rust.
Download for Mac, Windows, or Linux · Windows beta · Linux beta · TypeScript SDK · Contributing
HEX is local-first voice dictation for Apple silicon Macs running macOS 15 or newer. Hold a shortcut, speak, and release. HEX transcribes on your Mac and pastes the result into the app you are using.
- On-device transcription. Download a local speech model during setup; ordinary dictation does not require OpenCode or a cloud transcription service.
- Your words, your way. Choose a shortcut, language, and model. Use Modes for corrections, application-specific behavior, and optional text processing.
- Optional voice tools. Enable Voice Action or voice commands when you need them. Both start off; provider-backed rewriting is separate from local speech recognition.
The macOS app is available now. The Windows beta covers x64 and ARM64 PCs, and the Linux beta has a smaller feature set and requires a source build or Nix. See Privacy and local data for what stays on your device and what optional features send to a provider.
Install HEX
With Homebrew:
brew install --cask anomalyco/tap/hex
Then launch Hex from Applications and complete setup.
The cask installs the same signed app and keeps its built-in updater. Existing
DMG installations can keep using Check for Updates; Homebrew does not migrate
or forcibly replace another app already named Hex.app.
Or install manually:
- Download the latest signed DMG and open it.
- Drag
Hex.appinto Applications, then launch it. - Complete the permission and model steps in setup.
- Microphone lets HEX record while you dictate.
- Input Monitoring lets HEX detect its shortcut globally. Drag the HEX tile into the list.
- Accessibility lets HEX paste into the foreground app. Drag the HEX tile into the list.
- Transcription model downloads the speech model that runs locally.
HEX checks for signed updates automatically. Use Hex > Check for Updates… to check immediately.
Organizations that manage app versions themselves can turn off in-app updates,
including manual checks, with the DisableUpdates Boolean in the
com.kitlangton.hex2 preference domain. Deploy it in a configuration profile
(payload type com.kitlangton.hex2, key DisableUpdates, value true), or for a
single Mac run defaults write com.kitlangton.hex2 DisableUpdates -bool true.
Relaunch HEX to apply it. Model downloads still work.
Download blocked? Alternative download: GitHub — Hex 2.3.1
contains the identical signed DMG for Apple silicon and macOS 15+. App releases
use app-v… tags; the repository also publishes separate TypeScript SDK releases.
If an older installation cannot check for updates on your network, install the
DMG manually over the existing Rust app.
On managed networks, ask IT to allow downloads.hex.kitlangton.com and
downloads.hex.kitlangton.dev (in-app updates) for the app
and updates. Local model setup separately needs huggingface.co and its model
download CDN; optional Voice Commands needs download.moonshine.ai. A successful
app download does not establish that those model hosts are reachable. After
restoring access, retry model preparation in Settings (or Retry for Commands).
Coming from the original Swift app? Install the new app manually and complete setup. Settings and history are not transferred. Quit the old app before dictating in the new one so their shortcuts do not compete.
Dictate Anywhere
Hold Option, speak, then release. HEX transcribes and pastes at the current focus.
- Double-tap Option to keep recording; press Option again to finish.
- Press Escape to cancel.
- Press Option-Shift-V to paste the last completed dictation again.
Settings let you change the shortcut, microphone, language, local model, recording behavior, feedback volume, launch-at-login behavior, and Dock visibility. Corrections in Modes fix names and preferred spellings before text is pasted; modes can also apply optional rewriting and text transformations.
Use menu bar > Transcription Model to switch between downloaded models without opening Settings. Each model remembers its last selected language and, for Whisper, recognition hints. Choose the language in Settings once, then switch between combinations such as English with Parakeet and French with Whisper from the menu. Manage Models… opens the full picker for downloads and language changes.
Optional OpenCode Features
OpenCode V2 beta (opencode2) is optional. Ordinary
dictation does not require it.
- Voice Action: enable it in the Voice Action pane, then hold Option-Command and describe what you want. It defaults off, independently of your dictation shortcut. HEX sends that instruction, selected text when Accessibility makes it available, and the foreground application and Brave website hostname. It pastes the result at the current focus.
- Post-processing: enable OpenCode in Modes to rewrite a transcript before paste. HEX sends the transcript, foreground application, and Brave website hostname to the configured model provider. Modes can target applications and websites in Brave Browser.
If OpenCode rewriting fails, HEX keeps the corrected local transcript and still runs any selected text transformations. If that transformation stage fails, HEX keeps the text from before the stage, not partial transformation results. A failed Voice Action pastes nothing.
Experimental Voice Commands
Voice commands are available on macOS and disabled by default. Enabling them starts continuous local command recognition and requires a separate local command model; HEX prompts to install it when needed. Dictation remains available while command recognition is off or asleep.
The Commands pane lists built-in phrases and filters them by global, application,
and Brave website context. Advanced users can create
~/.config/hex/hex.config.ts for custom TypeScript commands. Custom commands
require Bun; HEX provides an Edit Config action and a prompt
you can paste into a local coding agent.
Custom command files and dependencies are executable local code with your user permissions. Review agent changes and install only dependencies you trust.
To teach a coding agent how to configure personal commands and transformations, install the official HEX skill:
npx skills add anomalyco/hex --skill hex-personal-commands
Privacy And Local Data
- Speech transcription and command recognition run locally.
- HEX does not save dictation audio by default.
- On macOS, History retains successfully pasted dictation and Voice Action text for seven days by default, including the local transcript, final text, and limited application and timing metadata. It never stores audio, full browser URLs, or window titles. Every retention choice has entry and byte limits.
- Use History > Keep: Off to stop adding entries, or Clear all to remove existing history. Turning retention off does not delete existing entries or disable diagnostic logging.
- An explicit
HEX_RETAIN_DICTATION_AUDIOdiagnostic setting can retain a bounded number of owner-only WAV files. - Local diagnostic logs can contain transcript text, recognized command speech, foreground application names, and Brave URLs. HEX does not upload these logs.
- OpenCode features send the data described above to your configured model provider.
- Model installation and software updates require network access.
Review and redact diagnostics before sharing them.
Troubleshooting
| Symptom | Check |
|---|---|
| HEX appears to disappear | Open HEX from its menu-bar hexagon. If the status item could not start, HEX keeps its Dock icon visible. |
| The shortcut does nothing | Open HEX and verify Microphone and Input Monitoring access. |
| Recording works but text does not paste | Verify Accessibility access. |
| Transcription does not start | Confirm that the selected local model is installed. |
| OpenCode features fail | Verify the separate OpenCode installation and model provider. |
| Voice commands do not respond | Confirm Commands is enabled and voice control is awake. |
| Website context does not match | Website-aware modes and commands currently require Brave Browser. |
Permission changes may require quitting and reopening HEX.
Still stuck? Report a bug with your HEX version, operating system, and steps to reproduce. Review and redact any attachments; do not upload private dictation, recordings, or full logs.
Diagnostics are stored at:
- macOS:
~/Library/Application Support/voice-control/logs/ - Windows:
%APPDATA%\voice-control\logs\ - Linux:
~/.local/share/voice-control/logs/, or underXDG_DATA_HOME
Windows Beta
The Windows beta runs on Windows 10 and 11, x64 and ARM64. It covers hotkey
dictation (Hold or Toggle, Ctrl+Space by default), Modes, Voice Action,
History, a tray icon, and signed self-updates. On x64 with a Vulkan graphics
driver, Parakeet Unified English streams while you speak, so text arrives within
about 100 ms of release even after minutes of talking; ARM64 transcribes on the
CPU. Voice commands, meetings, and the local transcription API are not included.
Download the installer for
x64 or
ARM64
and run it; it installs for your user without administrator rights. It is not
code-signed yet, so SmartScreen may warn: choose More info, then Run
anyway. See the Windows guide for details or to build from
source.
Linux Beta
The Linux beta targets x86_64 Linux on i3/X11 and compatible wlroots Wayland compositors. It supports local hotkey dictation, a GPUI settings shell, and signed updates for direct installs. With a Vulkan graphics driver, dictation streams while you speak, as on macOS and Windows. Native Wayland requires explicit input-device access and compositor support for clipboard, virtual-keyboard, and layer-shell protocols. Voice commands and meetings are not included.
Install the signed release on x86_64 Arch Linux (glibc 2.44 or later) with:
curl -fsSL https://downloads.hex.kitlangton.com/install-linux.sh | sh
The Linux installation guide covers inspecting the installer first, uninstalling, and building from source. It also describes requirements and limitations. For Nix/NixOS packaging and per-user autostart, see the Nix guide.
Build With HEX
@kitlangton/hex brings local transcription to your
own application through Promise and optional Effect APIs. Your app supplies the
recorded audio; HEX handles model preparation and transcription.
The SDK is published on npm, but a bundled native helper is not yet published. You must supply a compatible HEX executable. Follow the SDK guide for requirements and examples.
Contributing
Architecture, development commands, active plans, and historical research are
indexed in docs/README.md. Start with
CONTRIBUTING.md and AGENTS.md before changing
the native application. Report vulnerabilities through the process in
SECURITY.md.
HEX is available under the MIT License. Vendored icon licenses are listed in Third-Party Notices.