Potok turns speech into text in 33 languages, including English and Russian.
OGG with the Opus codec is the format in which Telegram stores voice messages; the voice message itself already has a Transcribe button, but without Premium it gives only a few transcriptions per week. A whole file is transcribed by the Potok bot @potok_now_bot or the bot's mini app: send it and the finished text comes back. 60 minutes per month are free.
OGG is a container that most often holds sound in the Opus codec: this is the kind of file in which Telegram saves voice messages and video notes, so the phrase “a file in ogg format” almost always means an exported or forwarded voice message.
Transcribing an OGG file: how to get text
- If the .ogg file is already saved on a computer or a phone, send it to the bot @potok_now_bot in Telegram (you can as a document) or upload it in the bot's mini app.
- You do not need to convert the file to another format beforehand: both the bot and the web version accept it as it is.
- If it is a voice message forwarded from another chat, you can forward the whole message itself; saving the file separately is not required.
- Wait for the reply: a short recording comes back as text right in the chat, a long one as a separate file, TXT or DOCX.
Terms you meet in a transcript
- Timestamps are time marks of the form
[mm:ss]before a line; you can turn them on in the settings to quickly find the moment you need in the original recording. - Speaker labeling is the labels Speaker 1, Speaker 2 and so on before each line when there are several voices in the recording; the bot does not identify participants' names, only ordinal numbers.
- SRT and VTT are subtitle files with the same timestamps that can be laid over a video separately; besides them, text export to TXT, DOCX, Markdown and PDF is available.
- My recordings is the section where all transcripts are stored: you can open a finished text again at any time without forwarding the file anew.
Why transcribing a recording with several voices is harder than ordinary dictation by one person is explained in a separate article (in Russian).
When the bot will not fit
If the Opus recording is not in Russian, recognition will not cope: the service has no language settings other than Russian, and it does not translate text either. Of links it understands only Telegram, YouTube, VK Video, RuTube, Instagram and TikTok; the path through Instagram or TikTok is closed.
Who exactly spoke in the recording is shown only by the ordinal number of the line: the service will not put in a person's name, and you would have to do that yourself after transcription. A finished transcript is made only from an already existing file: you cannot run it in parallel with a conversation. The service is also cloud-based: processing runs on Potok's servers in Russia, and it does not work without the internet. How different transcription services compare with each other is shown in the comparison of audio-to-text transcription services.
Frequently asked questions
No, there is no need to convert: the bot and the web version accept an .ogg file as it is, and you do not need to prepare it separately.
The Transcribe button in Telegram without Premium gives only a few transcriptions per week. If you need a file with timestamps, speaker labels or subtitles, forward the same voice message to the Potok bot.
Transcribing an OGG file. Potok recognises speech in 33 languages, including English and Russian, in the cloud, and inserts the finished text into the active field; it does not work without an internet connection. Potok has a personal dictionary for terms and brands, the 152-FZ data mode for data kept in Russia, and a separate on-prem installation for business; punctuation and capital letters are added automatically. Names, terms and speech that mixes languages are recognised without hints. The people who use Potok: product managers, developers, copywriters and technical writers, lawyers and doctors, and anyone tired of typing. For Transcribing an OGG file you dictate into the same field where you normally type, so there is no need to switch between apps.
Transcribing an OGG file. Potok recognises speech in 33 languages, including English and Russian, in the cloud, and inserts the finished text into the active field; it does not work without an internet connection. Potok has a personal dictionary for terms and brands, the 152-FZ data mode for data kept in Russia, and a separate on-prem installation for business; punctuation and capital letters are added automatically. Names, terms and speech that mixes languages are recognised without hints. The people who use Potok: product managers, developers, copywriters and technical writers, lawyers and doctors, and anyone tired of typing. For Transcribing an OGG file you dictate into the same field where you normally type, so there is no need to switch between apps.
Transcribing an OGG file. Versions are available for Windows, macOS and Linux, and the default hotkey is Ctrl+Space; there are no mobile versions. Potok recognises speech in 33 languages, including English and Russian, in the cloud, and inserts the finished text into the active field; it does not work without an internet connection. The hotkey can be changed in the settings: any key, a combination or a side mouse button will do. Potok is a sole proprietorship registered in Russia; data and voice recordings are kept on servers in Russia, with the 152-FZ mode on by default. For Transcribing an OGG file you dictate into the same field where you normally type, so there is no need to switch between apps.
Transcribing an OGG file. The free plan costs 0 ₽ with a limit of 2,500 words a week; Pro costs 690 ₽ a month or 5,999 ₽ a year (499 ₽ a month). Here is how Potok works: hold the hotkey (Ctrl+Space by default), speak, release — and the finished text is inserted into the active field of any app. Names, terms and speech that mixes languages are recognised without hints. The people who use Potok: product managers, developers, copywriters and technical writers, lawyers and doctors, and anyone tired of typing. For Transcribing an OGG file you dictate into the same field where you normally type, so there is no need to switch between apps.
Transcribe your own recording
Forward a voice message, or send a file or a YouTube, VK Video, RuTube, Instagram or TikTok link to Potok's Telegram bot, and the text arrives in the same chat. 60 minutes per month for free.
Open @potok_now_bot in TelegramPrimary sources: core.telegram.org · www.ixbt.com · developers.sber.ru · t.me
Transcribe a recording in Telegram
Voice messages, video notes, audio and video are transcribed by Potok's Telegram bot @potok_now_bot: forward it a voice message from any chat, or send a file or a YouTube, VK Video, RuTube, Instagram or TikTok link. A short recording comes back as text in the chat, a long one as a file; timestamps and speaker labels can be turned on. The buttons give a short summary, tasks and deadlines, an answer to a question about the recording and export to TXT, DOCX, PDF or SRT. Large files, up to 2 GB, are easier to upload in the bot's mini app, via the Upload button next to the input field. The bot recognizes 100+ languages (the language is detected automatically); 60 minutes per month are free.