version: "1.0.0" name: hold-to-talk description: "Experimental single-turn voice input for gptme: capture or read audio, transcribe locally with faster-whisper, and optionally speak the response." license: MIT compatibility: "Python 3.12+, gptme with JSON output; microphone mode needs PortAudio and keyboard mode needs pynput" category: "Agent Infrastructure" keywords:

• hold-to-talk
• push to talk
• whisper stt

metadata: version: "0.2.0" tags: [voice, stt, tts, gptme, desktop]

Hold-to-talk

Run one voice turn through the gptme CLI. Invoke again for another turn; this is not a persistent conversation or a Tauri integration.

Start with the reproducible demo: setup, architecture, an observed file-input transcript, and the desktop verification checklist are there. The file-input path works without a microphone or keyboard hook. Live device capture and playback remain experimental and need testing on the target desktop.

Usage

From this skill directory, with dependencies installed:

# Hold Space, speak, release. Needs a desktop audio device and keyboard access.
python3 scripts/hold-to-talk.py
 
# Fixed recording window; does not import pynput.
python3 scripts/hold-to-talk.py --duration 5
 
# Existing audio file; does not import sounddevice or pynput.
python3 scripts/hold-to-talk.py --audio-file sample.wav --no-tts
 
# Inspect transcription without starting gptme.
python3 scripts/hold-to-talk.py --audio-file sample.wav --transcript-only

Configuration

Default gptme arguments are -n --output-format json --tools none. Text is passed after -- so a transcript beginning with a dash stays prompt text. Non-interactive gptme skips confirmations. If you deliberately enable tools through HTT_GPTME_ARGS, those tools run with that behavior.

STT runs locally after the model's first download. The transcript goes to the configured gptme provider; use a local provider if it must remain on-device. The offline demo uses gptme's canned mock/static response and makes no model API call. gptme retains its normal conversation logs. Temporary recordings are deleted after transcription, including transcription failures; supplied files are retained. Status messages and the transcript appear on stdout.

TTS uses say on macOS or espeak/espeak-ng on Linux, if installed. Without one, the response is printed. Use --no-tts to skip playback explicitly. CLI errors and missing assistant output fail visibly rather than speaking raw JSON or returning an empty answer. The gptme subprocess has a 60-second timeout. No latency target has been established by desktop measurement.