Local models

Local processing keeps your audio on your device. OpenWhispr supports two speech recognition engines.

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OpenAI Whisper (via whisper.cpp)

The default local engine. Choose a model based on your needs:

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Setup

1. Go to Settings > Speech Recognition > Local
2. Select a Whisper model
3. Click Download — models are stored in ~/.cache/openwhispr/whisper-models/

The whisper.cpp binary is bundled with OpenWhispr. No Python or additional runtime needed.

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NVIDIA Parakeet (via sherpa-onnx)

A faster alternative to Whisper, especially on lower-end hardware.

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Setup

1. Go to Settings > Speech Recognition > Local
2. Switch the provider to NVIDIA Parakeet
3. Download the model

Parakeet uses INT8 quantized ONNX models for efficient CPU inference.

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Which to choose

• Parakeet — best for speed, lower-end hardware, or when you need multilingual support
• Whisper — best for quality, especially with the medium or large models

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Disk management

Remove downloaded models anytime from Settings > General > Local Model Storage > Remove Downloaded Models. Models can be re-downloaded when needed.