Oval

Oval is a native macOS client designed for seamless interaction with Open WebUI, enabling users to chat with their self-hosted AI directly from their Mac. This application prioritizes functionality and user experience, offering a host of features that enhance the AI chat experience.

Key Features

Core Functionalities

• Real-time Streaming Chat: Engage in conversations with full markdown rendering, supporting headings, bold, italic text, and syntax-highlighted code blocks.
• Model Selection: Choose from all available models on your Open WebUI server for tailored responses.
• Conversation Management: Easily navigate through conversations with a time-grouped sidebar (Today, Yesterday, Previous 7 Days, etc.) and powerful search capabilities.
• Chat Persistence: Save conversations to your server, ensuring they are always in sync with the web UI.
• Auto-generated Titles: New conversations automatically receive relevant titles for easy reference.
• Multi-server Support: Manage multiple Open WebUI servers effortlessly, enabling quick switching between them.

Quick Chat Features

• Global Hotkey: Activate a spotlight-style floating chat window anytime using Ctrl+Space.
• Paste to Chat: Quickly paste clipboard content into a new chat using Ctrl+Shift+V.
• Compact Input Mode: Enter a compact view that expands into a full conversation layout.

Attachments and Input Methods

• File and Image Attachments: Support drag and drop, Cmd+V paste, or use a file picker to share files during chats.
• Web Search Toggle: Enhance conversations with retrieval-augmented generation features.
• Voice Input: Utilize on-device speech-to-text functionality via the Apple Speech framework.

Voice Mode (v1.1.0)

• Floating Voice Window: Enjoy a compact, draggable ChatGPT-style window for voice interactions.
• On-device STT & TTS: Powered by RunAnywhere, ensuring voice data never leaves the device—only transcripts are sent to your server.
• Pipeline: Voice interaction is streamlined with a pipeline from microphone input to on-device Whisper STT and TTS.
• Multiple STT & TTS Models: Choose from various fast and accurate speech-to-text models and diverse voices for text-to-speech outputs.

macOS Integration

• Design Adaptability: Supports both light and dark modes, aligning with Open WebUI’s design aesthetics.
• Liquid Glass UI Effects: Offers a visually stunning user interface consistent with macOS design principles.
• Always on Top: Keep the application accessible by enabling an always-on-top feature.
• Menu Bar Icon: Provides quick access directly from the macOS menu bar.

Security and Privacy

Oval emphasizes user privacy by ensuring no data collection occurs. Network traffic is directly routed between the Mac and the Open WebUI server, and all user credentials are securely stored within the application’s sandbox. Voice interactions occur entirely on-device, meaning audio never leaves the user’s machine; only the text transcript is transmitted to the server for processing.

Contribution and Support

Contributions to the Oval project are welcome. Users can report bugs, request features, or engage in discussions through the GitHub repository.

Conclusion

Oval is positioned as an essential tool for macOS users engaging with the Open WebUI AI interface, providing a robust and user-friendly platform for effective communication with AI technologies.