Amical is an open-source, local-first AI dictation and note-taking application designed for users who prioritize privacy and speed. Built to run entirely on your machine, it leverages Whisper for speech-to-text transcription and open-source LLMs via Ollama to deliver context-aware transcription that adapts to your active application—whether you’re drafting an email, coding in an IDE, or messaging on Discord. Unlike cloud-based alternatives, Amical ensures your data never leaves your device, making it ideal for professionals handling sensitive information. With a lightweight Electron-based desktop interface and one-click local model setup, Amical offers enterprise-grade privacy without sacrificing performance or usability.
The app is built for developers, writers, and productivity-focused users who want to type 3x faster using voice while maintaining full control over their data. Its floating widget and customizable hotkeys allow seamless dictation without switching windows, making it a powerful tool for anyone looking to reduce keyboard dependency and streamline their workflow with AI-powered voice input.
What You Get
- Context-aware speech-to-text - Amical detects your active application (e.g., VS Code, Slack, Gmail) and adjusts transcription formatting accordingly—automatically adding line breaks for code, proper punctuation for emails, or conversational tone for chat apps.
- Offline-first AI processing - Powered by Whisper and Ollama, Amical runs all speech-to-text and summarization models locally; no data is sent to external servers, ensuring complete privacy.
- One-click local model setup - Users can download and configure Whisper and LLM models directly from the app interface without manual CLI configuration or technical expertise.
- Floating dictation widget - A persistent, click-to-start/stop overlay that works across all apps with customizable hotkeys for instant voice input without disrupting workflow.
- Extensible via hotkeys and voice macros - Users can define custom commands to trigger actions like starting transcription, pausing, or applying formatting rules using keyboard shortcuts or voice triggers.
Common Use Cases
- Building privacy-sensitive meeting notes - Professionals in legal, healthcare, or finance use Amical to transcribe internal meetings using system audio and microphone input without exposing sensitive content to cloud services.
- Developers dictating code comments and commit messages - Engineers use Amical’s context-aware feature to dictate code-related notes directly into their IDE, with automatic formatting for syntax and structure.
- Writing drafts without typing - Authors and content creators transcribe long-form ideas while walking or commuting, using Amical’s offline capability to avoid data leaks and internet dependency.
- DevOps teams managing secure documentation workflows - Teams deploying Amical internally use it to generate structured summaries from voice notes into task trackers, reducing manual note-taking overhead while complying with data sovereignty policies.
Under The Hood
Amical is a privacy-focused desktop application built with Electron and React, designed for local-first transcription and note-taking workflows. It emphasizes on-device processing and secure data handling, making it distinct in its approach to user privacy and cross-platform consistency.
Architecture
Amical follows a monolithic architecture within a monorepo structure, organizing code into distinct apps and packages to support modularity and reusability.
- The application uses a layered design with clear separation between core logic, services, and UI components
- Service-oriented architecture is employed to manage system modules and external integrations
- Modular organization enables scalable development across different parts of the desktop application
Tech Stack
The project is built primarily in TypeScript, leveraging modern web and desktop technologies for a robust and extensible system.
- Built with React and Electron, enabling cross-platform desktop functionality and a responsive UI
- Utilizes Drizzle ORM, @lexical, Radix UI, and @tanstack packages for database, text editing, and state management
- Vite, Turbo, and Electron Forge form the core build and deployment pipeline for efficient development and packaging
- Vitest, ESLint, and Prettier are integrated to ensure code quality, consistency, and maintainability
Code Quality
Amical demonstrates a structured testing approach with emphasis on isolated environments and service initialization.
- Testing is conducted using Vitest, covering key modules such as transcription handling and database operations
- Error handling is consistently applied with try/catch blocks across core modules to improve reliability
- Code linting and formatting are enforced through ESLint and Prettier configurations for consistent style
What Makes It Unique
Amical stands out through its integration of privacy-first features and modular UI design in a desktop environment.
- Implements local-first architecture with embedded audio processing (Silero VAD) to ensure privacy in transcription workflows
- Features a modular UI component system that adapts across desktop environments with extensive theming support
- Leverages TypeScript and Zod for type-safe configuration and runtime validation to reduce errors and improve developer experience
- Integrates Electron Forge with custom build scripts for seamless cross-platform distribution and native OS integration