# Dictate: hold a key, talk, let go

> Why I built a dictation app for people who switch languages mid-sentence.

By Arturo Díaz · 2026-10-11 · https://arturodiaz.com/writing/dictate/

Every dictation app I tried had the same two problems. I still fixed every third word, and the moment I switched from Spanish to English, it fell apart. I speak English, Spanish and French, often in the same sentence, so that second problem was the whole problem.

So I built [Dictate](/dictate/). Hold a key, talk in whatever languages you speak, let go, and the words land wherever the cursor is.

## What mattered

**Accuracy across languages.** Dictate is built on Soniox, which in my tests was the most accurate speech model for people who mix languages. Names and jargon you teach it stay right.

**Speed.** Words show up live while you talk and land about half a second after you let go. No spinner.

**Nothing else.** No account, no editor, no feed. One key and a small pill at the bottom of the screen.

## Modes

Every dictation starts as a clean transcript, with the ums and false starts dropped. Tap <kbd>⇧</kbd> while you talk to switch modes: Chat for messages that sound like you, Code for a crisp prompt to a coding agent, Write for clear paragraphs. Each mode is a plain-language instruction you can edit.

It runs on the Mac, and there's an iPhone keyboard too.