Here’s a detailed overview of the top 10 open-source AI transcription APIs available in 2024, along with their pros, cons, and websites for more information. For 100% accurate human transcription you need to use a specialist transcription company:

Whisper by OpenAI

• Pros: Excellent in handling diverse accents, background noise, and multilingual transcription.
• Cons: Requires substantial computing resources for optimal performance.
• Website: OpenAI

Mozilla DeepSpeech

• Pros: Real-time operation capability and supports a variety of devices.
• Cons: Limited by the smaller community for updates and support.
• Website: GitHub – Mozilla DeepSpeech

Kaldi

• Pros: Highly flexible and supports extensive customization.
• Cons: Complex setup and steep learning curve.
• Website: Kaldi ASR

SpeechBrain

• Pros: Supports multiple languages and a friendly support community.
• Cons: Documentation is not as comprehensive as some users might require.
• Website: SpeechBrain

Coqui STT

• Pros: High accuracy and supports real-time transcription.
• Cons: Project is no longer actively maintained by Coqui.
• Website: Coqui STT on GitHub

Julius

• Pros: Low memory usage and strong support for Japanese.
• Cons: Requires technical expertise to set up and operate.
• Website: Julius

Flashlight ASR (Formerly Wav2Letter++)

• Pros: Very fast due to its use of convolutional neural networks.
• Cons: Lack of pre-trained models can be a barrier for new users.
• Website: Flashlight ASR on GitHub

PaddleSpeech

• Pros: Offers high-end models and multiple functionalities including translation.
• Cons: Primarily focuses on Chinese, which might limit resources for other languages.
• Website: PaddleSpeech

OpenSeq2Seq

• Pros: Versatile and capable of handling large datasets efficiently.
• Cons: Significant resource consumption and primarily beneficial for users with Nvidia hardware.
• Website: OpenSeq2Seq on GitHub

Vosk

• Pros: Works offline and supports over 20 languages.
• Cons: Accuracy varies based on the language and the model used.
• Website: Vosk API

Each of these APIs offers unique features and capabilities that can cater to different needs in the realm of speech-to-text services. Whether you require real-time transcription, support for multiple languages, or the flexibility to work on various platforms, these tools provide a range of options to explore and utilise.