Voice-to-Text Input Options for Telegram → Reggie

Goal: Adam speaks → text appears in Telegram → Reggie receives it. Minimum friction, no copy/paste.

Researched: 2026-02-03

TL;DR — Best Options Ranked

#	Option	Friction	Platforms	Cost	Notes
🥇	Telegram voice messages (built-in)	Lowest	iOS/Mac/Android	Free (uses existing OpenAI key)	Already works. Clawdbot auto-transcribes voice notes. Hold mic button, speak, release. Done.
🥈	Wispr Flow	Very low	Mac + iOS + Windows	Free tier / $8-10/mo Pro	System-wide dictation in any app including Telegram. Speak → polished text inserted at cursor.
🥉	Superwhisper	Very low	Mac + iOS	Free tier / ~$8.49/mo Pro	Same concept as Wispr Flow. Has explicit Telegram/WhatsApp mode support.
4	macOS/iOS built-in dictation	Low	Mac/iOS	Free	Press mic key on keyboard → dictate → text appears. Works in Telegram.
5	OpenClaw macOS Voice Wake	Low	Mac (OpenClaw app)	Free	Wake word or push-to-talk → speaks to Reggie directly. Bypasses Telegram.
6	Voice Call Plugin	Medium	Phone call	Twilio/Telnyx costs	Call Reggie on the phone. Different UX entirely.

1. Telegram Voice Messages (BUILT-IN — ALREADY WORKS)

How it works

Clawdbot/OpenClaw has built-in audio transcription via the Media Understanding system. When you send a voice message in Telegram:

Telegram records and sends an .ogg voice note
Clawdbot downloads the audio attachment
Auto-transcribes using the first available provider (auto-detection order):
- Local CLIs: sherpa-onnx-offline → whisper-cli → whisper (Python)
- Gemini CLI
- Provider keys: OpenAI → Groq → Deepgram → Google
Sets Body to [Audio]\nTranscript: <text> and CommandBody/RawBody to the transcript
Reggie sees it as if you typed the message. Slash commands even work from voice.

What you need

An OpenAI API key (already configured) — uses gpt-4o-mini-transcribe by default
OR a Groq/Deepgram/Google key
OR a local Whisper installation
tools.media.audio.enabled must NOT be false (it’s enabled by default with auto-detect)

Config (probably already working, but explicit if needed)

{
  tools: {
    media: {
      audio: {
        enabled: true,  // default: auto-detect
        // models: [{ provider: "openai", model: "gpt-4o-mini-transcribe" }]
      }
    }
  }
}

Friction level

iOS: Hold mic button → speak → release (or swipe up to lock for longer messages)
macOS Telegram: Click mic icon → speak → click send
Verdict: 2 taps. Very low friction. This is likely the winner.

Limitations

Voice messages are capped at mediaMaxMb (default 5MB on Telegram, ~4-5 min of audio)
Transcription adds a small delay (few seconds) before Reggie processes
Default processes first audio attachment only (configurable to all)

2. Wispr Flow (wisprflow.ai)

What it is

System-wide voice-to-text AI for Mac, Windows, and iPhone. You activate it (hotkey or button), speak naturally, and it inserts clean, polished text directly at your cursor in any app — including Telegram.

Key features

Works in every app (system-wide text insertion)
AI-powered: corrects grammar, removes filler words, adds punctuation
Claims 220 wpm vs 45 wpm typing
Custom vocabulary support
Mac, Windows, iOS (Android coming soon)

Telegram integration

Indirect but seamless: You open Telegram, focus the message input, activate Wispr Flow (hotkey), speak, and the polished text appears in the input field. Then you hit Enter/Send.
No native Telegram integration — it’s an OS-level dictation replacement

Pricing

Free tier (Flow Basic) — after 14-day Pro trial
Pro — pricing not displayed on page (likely $8-10/mo based on competitors)
14-day free trial of Pro for all new users

Pros

Text arrives already cleaned up (no “um”, “uh”, proper punctuation)
Works everywhere, not just Telegram
Very polished product

Cons

Extra step: you still need to press Send after dictating
Paid for full features
iPhone app may require switching apps or using keyboard extension
Not on Android

3. Superwhisper (superwhisper.com)

What it is

Very similar to Wispr Flow — system-wide voice dictation with AI enhancement. Mac + iOS.

Key differentiator

Explicitly supports Telegram and WhatsApp as target apps in its mode configuration
“Modes” system: you can create a “Message mode” that activates specifically when using Telegram/WhatsApp with appropriate tone settings
Can use local models (Whisper) or cloud (GPT, Claude, Llama)
Push-to-talk support
Custom shortcuts to launch/dictate
File transcription (upload audio/video → get text)

Telegram integration

Same as Wispr Flow: system-wide, inserts text at cursor
But has app-aware modes — can auto-switch dictation style when Telegram is focused
Custom Mode lets you set formatting rules per-app

Pricing

Free tier: Basic voice-to-text, small AI models, unlimited use
Pro: $8.49/mo (40% student discount) — cloud + local models, file transcription, translation
Enterprise: custom pricing

Pros

Free tier is genuinely usable
App-aware modes for Telegram specifically
Local model option (privacy)
Also available on iOS

Cons

Same send-button friction as Wispr Flow
Mac + iOS only (no Windows, no Android)

4. macOS / iOS Built-in Dictation

How it works

macOS: Press the mic key (🎤) on the keyboard, or Fn Fn (double-press), or enable via System Settings → Keyboard → Dictation
iOS: Tap the mic icon on the iOS keyboard in Telegram
Text appears at the cursor in Telegram’s input field

Pros

Free, built-in, zero setup
Works in Telegram (and everywhere)
iOS dictation is quite good with Apple Intelligence
Can be always-on (continuous dictation on newer macOS)

Cons

Less intelligent than Wispr/Superwhisper (fewer corrections, more literal)
Still need to hit Send
Occasional recognition errors
Can’t customize vocabulary/tone

Verdict

If you just want to talk-to-text for free with zero setup, this already works today.

5. OpenClaw macOS App — Voice Wake & Push-to-Talk

What it is

The OpenClaw macOS companion app has built-in Voice Wake (wake-word activation) and Push-to-Talk (hold Right Option key) that sends transcribed speech directly to Reggie.

How it works

Wake-word mode: Always-on speech recognizer listens for trigger words. On match, starts capture, shows overlay with partial text, auto-sends after silence.
Push-to-talk: Hold Right Option key → speak → release → sends to Reggie.
Replies are delivered to the last-used channel (WhatsApp/Telegram/Discord/WebChat).

Pros

Zero-tap interaction with wake word — just speak
Push-to-talk is one key hold
Bypasses Telegram entirely (voice → Reggie directly)
Built into the app you already run

Cons

Requires the OpenClaw macOS app (not just the gateway)
Wake word might false-trigger
Mac only
Doesn’t work from iOS/phone

6. Monologue (monologueapp.com)

What it actually is

Not a voice-to-text tool. Monologue is a journaling app (“journal like you’re texting”). It’s a text-based note-taking app with a messaging-style UI. Not relevant to this use case.

7. Voice Call Plugin (OpenClaw)

What it is

OpenClaw has a Voice Call plugin that lets you literally call Reggie on the phone via Twilio, Telnyx, or Plivo. Full bidirectional voice conversation.

Pros

Most natural voice interaction — just talk
Multi-turn conversation support
Real phone call, works from any phone

Cons

Requires Twilio/Telnyx/Plivo setup + costs
Different UX than Telegram chat
Conversation context is separate from Telegram thread
Overkill for quick messages

8. Telegram Speech-to-Text Bots

Telegram has some third-party bots that claim to transcribe voice messages, but these are:

Unreliable / shut down frequently
Privacy concerns (your audio goes to unknown servers)
Completely unnecessary since Clawdbot already does this natively

Recommendation

Simplest path (do nothing new):

Just use Telegram voice messages. Clawdbot already transcribes them automatically with your existing OpenAI key. Hold mic → speak → release. Reggie gets the text. You’re done.

To verify it’s working:

clawdbot doctor
# Check for audio transcription in the output

Or send a test voice message to Reggie on Telegram and see if he responds to the content.

If you want polished text (cleaned up grammar/filler words):

Install Superwhisper (free tier) or Wispr Flow (14-day trial). Both work system-wide in Telegram. Superwhisper has the edge with its Telegram-aware mode system.

If you want hands-free from Mac:

Enable Voice Wake in the OpenClaw macOS app — just say the wake word and talk.

Configuration to verify/set

Check your config for audio transcription:

clawdbot configure --show | grep -A 10 "media"

If nothing is configured, auto-detect should work if you have an OpenAI API key set. The default model is gpt-4o-mini-transcribe.

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Voice-to-Text Input Options for Telegram → Reggie

TL;DR — Best Options Ranked

1. Telegram Voice Messages (BUILT-IN — ALREADY WORKS)

How it works

What you need

Config (probably already working, but explicit if needed)

Friction level

Limitations

2. Wispr Flow (wisprflow.ai)

What it is

Key features

Telegram integration

Pricing

Pros

Cons

3. Superwhisper (superwhisper.com)

What it is

Key differentiator

Telegram integration

Pricing

Pros

Cons

4. macOS / iOS Built-in Dictation

How it works

Pros

Cons

Verdict

5. OpenClaw macOS App — Voice Wake & Push-to-Talk

What it is

How it works

Pros

Cons

6. Monologue (monologueapp.com)

What it actually is

7. Voice Call Plugin (OpenClaw)

What it is

Pros

Cons

8. Telegram Speech-to-Text Bots

Recommendation

Simplest path (do nothing new):

If you want polished text (cleaned up grammar/filler words):

If you want hands-free from Mac:

Configuration to verify/set

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