Tolkovo is a new open-source macOS application designed for offline voice-to-text input. The tool is built on the Handy framework using Rust and React, requiring no user accounts or cloud connectivity after the initial model download.
The application utilizes the GigaAM v3 model from SberDevices, which features 223 million parameters and a file size of 274 MB. The model supports automatic punctuation and is automatically downloaded upon the first launch of the software.
Performance metrics on a MacBook Pro M2 with 8 GB of RAM show the model loads in 0.4–0.5 seconds. The app consumes 360 MB of memory when the model is active and 90 MB when idle, automatically unloading the model after 5 minutes of inactivity.
Tolkovo includes a built-in dictionary with 191 predefined replacements to handle anglicisms and product names, ensuring accurate transcription. The software is compatible with macOS 14 and newer on Apple Silicon devices.
The developer emphasizes privacy by disabling cloud processing and local history storage. Installation requires a manual quarantine removal command, as the application is not signed with a paid Apple certificate.
