Captions and transcripts make it so much easier to follow along with everything from Netflix shows to Meet calls, and we always appreciate it when apps try to be more inclusive by adding stuff like this.Google Messages got voice transcriptswith the arrival of thePixel 7, while Telegram added transcriptionsas part of its paid Premium tier. It looks like WhatsApp will soon join the fray with its own system for transcribing your voice messages.
We first heard aboutWhatsApp working on transcriptions back in 2021. The feature as we heard about it then was in the context of iOS, and relied on the iPhone’s built-in tool to convert audio files to text. Fast-forward to today, and transcription looks like it’s finally coming soon to WhatsApp, as some evidence appears in the latest beta.
A dialogue box in the WhatsApp beta for iOS details reasons why the app might not be able to transcribe a voice note received in a chat, as spotted byWABetaInfo. Perhaps the audio doesn’t have any words for the tool to pick up, or the language is different from what is set as default. It also gives you the option to change the language, indicating support for multiple languages from the get-go.
We don’t yet have any info on how well (or if at all) the feature works for iOS users in its current beta state. But the report does specify that WhatsApp is still leveraging the iPhone’s on-device transcription capabilities to convert voice notes into text entirely offline, just like in those earlier tests. While great for your privacy, this approach will require you to download appropriate language packs on your phone for the feature to work.
If you’re an iPhone user, you can get the WhatsApp beta version 23.3.0.73, so long as you’re a part of Apple’s TestFlight beta testing program. Otherwise, you will have to wait for the transcription feature to make it to the stable release.
Of course, we’remostinterested in what this development could mean for transcription on Android, but for the moment we’re still waiting for news. If WhatsApp doesn’t have its own voice-to-text conversion engine, it could instead use Google’s excellent tool that has proven extremely reliable in apps likeGoogle Recorderand Meet.
