VoxScribe: A Unified Platform for Speech-to-Text Testing

VoxScribe serves as a lightweight and cohesive platform designed specifically for testing and comparing various open-source speech-to-text (STT) models through a single, user-friendly interface. Addressing real-world challenges faced by enterprises, where proprietary STT solutions can become excessively costly at scale, VoxScribe provides accessible alternatives that leverage the power of open-source technology.

The Challenge

Many startups involved in large-scale speech transcription encounter the significant dilemma of balancing cost and control. For instance, a contact center may incur transcription expenses exceeding $150,000 for processing 100,000 hours of calls each month. While open-source STT models such as Whisper, Voxtral, Parakeet, and Canary-Qwen offer accuracy comparable to proprietary solutions, evaluating these models presents several challenges:

• Dependency Conflicts: Complicated library version issues arise, particularly with models like Voxtral and NeMo.
• Diverse APIs: Each model requires different integration protocols, complicating the testing process.
• Setup Complexity: Managing CUDA drivers, Python environments, and debugging can take hours or even days.
• Limited Comparative Analysis: A lack of a unified system for assessing multiple models against specific use cases hampers decision-making.

Features of VoxScribe

VoxScribe offers several key features:

• ✅ Unified Interface: Test over five open-source STT models seamlessly through a FastAPI backend and an intuitive web UI.
• ✅ Automated Dependency Management: The platform manages library version conflicts automatically, simplifying setup for users.
• ✅ Side-by-Side Comparisons: Users can upload audio files and compare transcription results across different models.
• ✅ Model Caching: Intelligent caching boosts performance by facilitating faster subsequent runs.
• ✅ Clean RESTful API: Simplifies integration into existing workflows with straightforward API endpoints.
• ✅ Cost-Effective Solution: Being self-hosted allows for better control over transcription expenses.

Supported Models

VoxScribe currently supports:

• OpenAI Whisper: Serving as an industry-standard baseline.
• Mistral Voxtral: The latest transformer-based approach.
• NVIDIA Parakeet: Known for its enterprise-grade accuracy.
• Canary-Qwen-2.5B: Offers multilingual capabilities.
• And more: New models can be easily integrated into the platform.

Architecture Overview

├── backend.py          # FastAPI backend containing STT logic
├── public/             # Frontend static files
│   ├── index.html      # Main interface for users
│   ├── styles.css      # Styles for dark/light themes
│   └── app.js          # JavaScript handling frontend logic
├── run.py              # Script to run the application
└── requirements.txt    # List of Python dependencies

Comprehensive Functionality

Backend (FastAPI)

• RESTful API handling all STT operations.
• Unified model management to streamline functionality across Whisper, Voxtral, Parakeet, and Canary.
• Automatic dependency resolution for a smoother experience during setup.
• File upload and processing through background tasks, enhancing user experience.
• Model comparison endpoint for evaluating multiple models in tandem.

Frontend (HTML/CSS/JS)

• Modern responsive design equipped with dark/light theme options.
• Drag and drop file upload functionality, along with audio previews.
• Real-time updates for model and dependency statuses.
• Multi-model comparison feature allowing checkbox selections.
• Result visualization with download options available for CSV and text formats.

API Endpoints

Available API endpoints include:

• GET /api/status: Retrieve system and dependency status.
• POST /api/transcribe: Perform transcription using a single model.
• POST /api/compare: Execute comparisons between multiple models.

Advantages Over Similar Solutions

VoxScribe outperforms traditional platforms such as Streamlit in several respects:

1. No ScriptRunContext warnings: Ensures a clean separation of concerns.
2. Improved performance: Built upon FastAPI, known for its efficiency.
3. Enhanced user interface: Custom UI built with HTML/CSS offering superior user experience.
4. API-first architecture: Facilitates easy integration with other systems.
5. Simplified deployment: Features standard web application deployment practices.
6. Robust error handling: Provides proper HTTP status codes and error responses.
7. Scalable architecture: Supports multiple concurrent user requests with ease.

Supported Audio Formats

VoxScribe supports various audio formats, including WAV, MP3, FLAC, M4A, and OGG, ensuring versatility in handling input files.

By choosing VoxScribe, access state-of-the-art speech-to-text technology while managing operational costs effectively.