Changelog

2.15.0

2026-05-09

Changed

• Permissions live on the Dictate tab (#364) -- the permissions status bar now sits where you actually start dictating, instead of being buried in Settings. When microphone, accessibility, or input monitoring is missing or revoked, you see the warning where it matters and can re-grant in one click.
• Simpler Settings (#364) -- removed the standalone Permissions pane. The Dictate tab is the single source of truth for permission state, so there is no more "everything is fine" copy in Settings while Dictate quietly says otherwise.

Fixed

• Sign-up and licence session handshake -- a server-side authentication mismatch could reject some sign-up and licence-session requests. The handshake is now consistent on both ends so trials, activations, and checkout flows go through reliably.

2.14.2

2026-05-07

Fixed

• Trial, activation, and checkout -- Pro builds could be rejected at the server with an authentication error, blocking new trials and purchases. Both sides of the handshake have been corrected so requests are accepted again.
• Checkout requests with redirect URLs -- the success and cancel URLs on a checkout request could fail signature verification because of a JSON encoding mismatch between the app and the server. Encoding is now deterministic on both sides.

2.14.0

2026-05-05

Added

• In-context help during onboarding (#351) -- every onboarding step now has a discreet "Need help?" row with three chips: GPT, Claude, and Copy prompt. Each builds a context-aware prompt for the current step (and permission status, where relevant) and hands it off to ChatGPT or Claude. The clipboard is always populated, so the prompt is never lost if a deep link fails.
• "Okay, what's next?" walkthrough (#351) -- after the final permission step, a three-screen guide teaches the core action: click into a text field, hold the shortcut, speak, release, watch your words land at the cursor. User-paced with Back, Next, and Replay controls. Respects Reduce Motion.
• Previous navigation in onboarding (#351) -- a Previous button now appears in the coach-mark footer from step 2 onwards, so you can revisit earlier steps without restarting the wizard.
• Onboarding model picker (#349) -- first-run setup now includes a "Choose a transcription model" step. The picker suggests a Whisper model based on your Mac (Apple Silicon with 16+ GB RAM and free disk gets Medium, 8+ GB gets Small, smaller machines get Tiny) and lets you opt out to "Apple Speech only". Nothing downloads until you tap Continue.
• Apple Speech fallback -- when Whisper is unavailable, mid-download, or fails to load, the app silently transcribes via Apple Speech and shows a clear status line. Your saved engine choice is never overwritten on a Whisper failure -- once Whisper recovers, it takes over again.

Changed

• Onboarding layout polish (#351) -- progress dots moved to the top of each coach mark for better hierarchy. Permission steps show the status pill in the header next to the title.
• Settings copy -- the Speech engine card in Settings now states the fallback contract: "Apple Speech is used as a fallback while a model downloads or if it cannot run."

2.13.2

2026-05-01

Changed

• Install flow -- VoxChimp no longer offers to copy itself into Applications. The download disk image is the canonical install path: drag VoxChimp Pro into Applications from there, like any other Mac app. If you launch VoxChimp from outside Applications, you will see a friendly reminder asking you to reinstall from the DMG.
• Auto-updates require Applications -- if VoxChimp is running from outside your Applications folder (Downloads, Desktop, an external drive, or a disk image), automatic updates are paused and the manual "Check for Updates..." button explains why. Move VoxChimp into Applications to re-enable updates. This avoids silent update failures Sparkle would have produced from outside Applications.

Fixed

• Duplicate VoxChimp window after install (#336) -- the in-app move flow could spawn a second instance and leave the original running. Removed the in-app mover entirely (see Changed above), so this can no longer happen.
• DMG layout -- the download disk image now uses the standard drag-to-Applications layout with an Applications shortcut, instead of a flat file list. Branded background image will follow in a later release.

2.13.1

2026-05-01

Added

• Install prompt -- when VoxChimp launches from Downloads or a mounted disk image, a friendly dialog now offers to move the app into Applications. Running from Applications keeps Sparkle updates and macOS permissions stable across launches.
• DMG install hint -- the download disk image now shows a "Drag VoxChimp into Applications to install" arrow, so first-time users know where the app is meant to live.

2.13.0

2026-04-30

Added

• First Run Setup wizard -- a guided 8-step welcome tour on first launch covers dictation, the shortcut, vocabulary, AI tools, history, and access permissions. Replay any time from Help > Show First Run Setup or Settings > General.
• Permissions walkthrough -- microphone, accessibility, and input monitoring each have a dedicated card explaining why VoxChimp needs them, with step-by-step instructions and a "Test your hotkey" button to verify Input Monitoring works.
• Live permissions hub -- Settings > Permissions now shows real-time status for each permission with one-click deep links into System Settings. Replaces the previous read-only placeholder.
• Troubleshooting article at voxchimp.com/support#common-issues covers the most common permission and hotkey problems.

Changed

• Chimps tab marked "Coming Soon" with a clearer badge. The standalone custom-dictionary input was removed -- Workspace > Vocabulary already covers custom words.

Fixed

• Microphone permission denial now shows a clear actionable error before recording starts instead of silently failing.
• First-launch onboarding is reliably visible again. Earlier versions silently dropped the wizard after a sidebar refactor.

2.12.1

2026-04-26

Changed

• Internal security infrastructure -- the app now signs every request to the VoxChimp backend with a per-request HMAC. Groundwork for stricter authentication that will roll out in later releases. No user-visible behaviour change in this version.

2.12.0

2026-04-25

Added

• Custom vocabulary -- teach VoxChimp the names, jargon, and acronyms it keeps mishearing, with a guided pronunciation capture flow. Works across WhisperKit, Parakeet, and Apple Speech
• Editable transcripts in History -- correct typos and phrasing in past transcriptions; the app suggests adding repeated corrections to your vocabulary so it learns over time

Removed

• "Reset all settings" option removed -- individual setting changes remain reversible

2.10.6

2026-04-22

Fixed

• Recording widget no longer shows the previous cycle's state -- starting a dictation after a skill run now correctly resets the bar to "Listening"
• Agent and search dashboards stripped of fabricated sample metrics; both views now display only real provider data (connection status, configuration)

2.10.5

2026-04-21

Fixed

• Accessibility permission cycle -- text insertion no longer triggers repeated permission prompts when Accessibility access is revoked mid-session; the app detects the loss, blocks paste gracefully, and notifies the user instead of looping

2.10.4

2026-04-20

Fixed

• Large Whisper model CoreML compile failures now fall back from ANE to CPU automatically, with a persistent banner when the device cannot load the large model
• Transcription view no longer hangs on app launch when scanning the models directory
• Skill hotkey release no longer triggers duplicate invocations
• WhisperKit concurrent transcription crash resolved
• Licence OTP send failures now surface a clear retry message instead of silently failing

Changed

• API dependencies patched for security and maintenance updates

2.10.3

2026-04-18

Fixed

• Translation no longer reverts to the wrong language after switching providers
• License activation dialog hierarchy and keyboard shortcut mappings corrected
• Web search errors are now sanitised and surface useful messages instead of raw provider output
• Logging cleanup across services (replaced stray `print` calls)

2.10.2

2026-04-17

Added

• Changelog extraction for Sparkle appcast release notes
• Sidebar keyboard shortcuts displayed next to navigation items
• History search now shows human-readable dates

Fixed

• Sidebar alignment -- WORKSPACE and APP section labels now align with content headings
• ModelManager test hang resolved with lazy scanning and dependency injection
• UK English spelling enforced across all user-facing copy
• Code coverage and tech debt improvements

Changed

• Website refreshed with updated styling, animations, and layout

2.10.0

2026-04-15

Fixed

• Audio archiving now saves recordings correctly to ~/.voxchimp_audio/

2.9.0

2026-04-14

Added

• Parakeet TDT transcription engine as an alternative to WhisperKit - faster and more accurate on Apple Silicon
• Dark theme across the entire app with a modern look
• Sidebar navigation in settings for easier access to all options
• Card-based settings layout for a cleaner, more organised interface

Changed

• Settings redesigned with sidebar navigation replacing the old tab layout
• Menu items reorganised for better discoverability

Fixed

• Menu changes for better discoverability and usability

2.8.5

2026-04-08

Fixed

• AI translation works more reliably across different language pairs

2.8.4

2026-04-08

Added

• Output locale setting to control spelling normalisation separately from recognition language
• Recognition language and output locale are now independent - recognise in one language, spell in another

2.8.3

2026-04-08

Fixed

• Double window no longer appears on launch
• UI text cleaned up to use consistent formatting throughout
• Licence session handling hardened for better reliability

2.8.2

2026-04-07

Added

• Account protection against fraudulent chargebacks - your licence is better protected

Fixed

• Stability improvements across the licence system

2.8.1

2026-04-05

Fixed

• Stability improvements and internal fixes

2.8.0

2026-04-04

Added

• Recommended models page to help you pick the best local transcription model
• Model search to find and download models directly from the app

Fixed

• Security improvement in API request handling

2.7.1

2026-04-02

Added

• Serper search provider for web-connected skill responses
• Automated release pipeline for faster, more reliable updates

Fixed

• Update dialogue no longer shows duplicate signature warnings

2.7.0

2026-04-01

Fixed

• Billing no longer creates duplicate subscriptions in rare cases

2.6.2

2026-03-30

Fixed

• Build reliability improvements for consistent updates
• Dependency upgrades for better performance and security

2.6.1

2026-03-28

Added

• LM Studio support as an AI provider for skills - run local language models on your Mac or network

Changed

• LM Studio URL is configurable for accessing models on other machines

2.6.0

2026-03-26

Added

• Microsoft Copilot as an AI provider for skills
• Improved Gemini support with better error handling and fallbacks

2.5.1

2026-03-25

Fixed

• AI provider validation works correctly for all supported providers
• Gemini provider connection issues resolved
• Main window opens reliably from the menu bar

2.5.0

2026-03-24

Added

• Multi-provider AI support - choose between different AI services for skills

Fixed

• Microphone permissions checked before requesting access to avoid unnecessary prompts

2.4.5

2026-03-23

Fixed

• Stability improvements and internal fixes

2.4.4

2026-03-23

Fixed

• Menus reorganised for better usability
• Number formatting now respects your system locale

2.4.3

2026-03-23

Fixed

• Stability improvements and internal fixes

2.4.2

2026-03-23

Fixed

• Stability improvements and internal fixes

2.4.1

2026-03-22

Fixed

• Keychain sync prevented from syncing licence data via iCloud to other devices
• Analytics no longer sends events in debug builds

2.4.0

2026-03-19

Added

• Transcription insights dashboard showing your usage patterns and statistics
• Onboarding wizard guides you through setup on first launch

Fixed

• Skill output now returns only the result text without extra preamble

2.3.0

2026-03-15

Added

• Skill system with 5 built-in skills - SOAP notes, meeting summaries, email drafts, rewriting, and grammar fixes
• Hold Right Option to activate skill mode for AI-powered text processing

Fixed

• Purchase button no longer creates duplicate checkout sessions when tapped quickly

2.2.2

2026-03-10

Changed

• Menu bar icon now shows an animated waveform while recording

2.2.0

2026-03-06

Added

• Improved trial security with device fingerprinting to prevent abuse
• Better account protection against licence key sharing

2.1.1

2026-03-04

Fixed

• Dependency updates for improved security and stability

2.1.0

2026-03-02

Fixed

• Stability improvements and internal fixes

2.0.5

2026-02-24

Fixed

• Code quality improvements across the app for better reliability
• Linting fixes throughout the codebase

2.0.4

2026-02-16

Fixed

• Window reopen now works reliably from the menu bar after closing

2.0.3

2026-02-16

Fixed

• Menu bar visibility toggle and window reopen from menu bar

2.0.2

2026-02-16

Fixed

• Auto-updater signing fixed so updates install correctly

2.0.0

2026-02-01

Added

• Post-transcription translation using Apple Translation framework
• WhisperKit integration for on-device transcription with model selection
• Apple Speech fallback when Whisper model is not yet downloaded
• Menu bar status item with chimp mascot for quick access
• Model loading indicator with progress feedback during downloads
• Voice health dashboard with real-time acoustic analysis
• Health notifications for voice biomarker alerts
• Audio level indicator showing microphone input in real-time
• Licensing system supporting App Store and direct distribution builds
• Sparkle update framework for automatic updates

Changed

• Complete UI redesign with warm theme and modern aesthetics
• New app icon featuring the chimp mascot
• Modernised interface with vibrancy effects and SF Symbols
• Improved error recovery with graceful degradation on failures

Fixed

• Race conditions in model download flow
• WhisperKit model naming and cache scanning issues
• Toolbar button functionality
• Health window crash on launch
• Baseline accumulation bug in health analysis

1.0.0

2026-01-15

Added

• Initial release of VoxChimp voice dictation
• Hold-to-record with configurable hotkey (Option, Control, Caps Lock)
• Local Whisper transcription (tiny/small/medium/large models)
• Auto-paste transcribed text at cursor position
• Basic grammar fixing (capitalisation, punctuation)
• Transcription history with JSON export
• Optional audio archiving
• Native macOS UI
• Comprehensive logging with rotation