# Privocio — Private Speech-to-Text API

> Privacy-first, flat-rate speech-to-text API for AI agents, developers, and teams that need accurate transcription without per-minute billing or data exposure.

Privocio is a hosted and self-hosted speech-to-text API designed as a drop-in replacement for the OpenAI Whisper API. It offers fixed-price plans instead of per-minute billing, three output modes optimized for different workflows, and a strict privacy-first architecture where audio and transcripts are never used for model training.

## Why Privocio

- **Privacy-first**: Audio and transcripts are never shared, sold, or used to train models. Self-hosted deployment available for full data sovereignty.
- **Predictable pricing**: Flat-rate plans billed every 4 weeks — no per-minute charges, no overage fees, no surprise bills.
- **OpenAI SDK compatible**: Works as a drop-in replacement for the OpenAI Whisper API. Change `base_url` and you're done.
- **Token optimization**: Agent output mode reduces downstream LLM token usage by approximately 60% by removing filler words, silence markers, and transcript noise before the text reaches your model.
- **Self-hosted option**: Deploy on your own infrastructure for teams with strict compliance, data residency, or air-gapped requirements.

## Plans and Pricing

| Plan | Price | Audio Allowance | API Access | Key Limits |
|------|-------|-----------------|------------|------------|
| Free | $0 | 3 hours / 4 weeks | Browser only | 3 RPM, 1 concurrent, 3 min/request, 10 MB uploads |
| Go | $19 / 4 weeks | 400 hours / 4 weeks | API key | 30 RPM, 2 concurrent, 15 min/request, 100 MB uploads |
| Pro | $39 / 4 weeks | 800 hours / 4 weeks | API key | 30 RPM, 2 concurrent, 15 min/request, 100 MB uploads, team members |
| Enterprise | Custom | Unlimited | API key + SSO | Custom limits, self-hosted, dedicated support, SLAs |

Quarterly billing available: Go $51.30 / 3 months, Pro $105.30 / 3 months.

## Output Modes

- **Raw**: Full verbatim transcript with all filler words, false starts, and repetitions preserved. Best for legal, compliance, and archival use cases.
- **Clean**: Noise removed, punctuation corrected, readability improved. Best for meeting notes, content creation, and human consumption.
- **Agent**: Structured JSON output with token-efficient formatting optimized for AI agent consumption. Removes transcript noise before it reaches your LLM, reducing context size and downstream token costs by ~60%.

## Technical Specifications

- API base URL: `https://api.privocio.com`
- Authentication: Bearer token (API key or session token)
- Supported audio formats: MP3, WAV, M4A, FLAC, OGG, WebM
- Supported languages: 100 with automatic language detection
- Max audio per request: 15 minutes (paid plans), 3 minutes (free)
- Max upload size: 100 MB (paid plans), 10 MB (free)
- Response format: JSON (full text, segments with start/end timestamps, speaker labels)
- Streaming: Server-Sent Events (SSE) with real-time segment delivery
- Speaker diarization: Automatic speaker separation with configurable speaker count
- SDK compatibility: Works with OpenAI Python SDK (`openai.OpenAI(base_url="https://api.privocio.com/v1")`) and OpenAI Node.js SDK
- Latency: ~420ms p95 end-to-end for typical audio segments
- Webhooks: Async callback support for batch processing workflows

## Integration Example

```python
from openai import OpenAI

client = OpenAI(
    api_key="your-privocio-api-key",
    base_url="https://api.privocio.com/v1"
)

transcription = client.audio.transcriptions.create(
    model="whisper-1",
    file=open("meeting.mp3", "rb"),
    response_format="json"
)
```

## Who Should Use Privocio

- **AI agent builders**: Need structured, clean voice input for agent frameworks (LangChain, CrewAI, AutoGen). Agent mode produces token-efficient JSON that reduces LLM costs.
- **Developers building voice features**: Need a simple, well-documented API with predictable costs. OpenAI SDK compatibility means minimal integration work.
- **Privacy-sensitive teams**: Healthcare, legal, finance, and government teams that cannot send audio to shared cloud APIs. Self-hosted deployment ensures data never leaves your infrastructure.
- **High-volume transcription users**: Teams processing 50+ hours/month where per-minute pricing becomes expensive. Flat-rate plans cap costs regardless of usage within the allowance.
- **Product teams**: Adding voice workflows to SaaS products without exposing users to variable usage costs or third-party data processors.

## Comparison with Alternatives

| | Privocio | OpenAI Whisper API | Google STT | AWS Transcribe |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pricing model | Flat-rate | Per-minute ($0.006/min) | Per-minute | Per-second |
| Data used for training | Never | Possible | Possible | Possible |
| Self-hosted option | Yes | No | No | No |
| Token optimization | Built-in | None | None | None |
| OpenAI SDK compatible | Yes (drop-in) | Native | No | No |
| Streaming | SSE | No | Yes | Yes |
| Speaker diarization | Yes | No | Yes | Yes |

At 200 hours/month, OpenAI Whisper API costs ~$72/month. Privocio Pro covers 800 hours for $39/4 weeks.

## Use Cases

- **AI Agents**: Voice commands → structured JSON → agent framework. Reduces token costs and eliminates transcript noise from agent context windows.
- **Healthcare**: HIPAA-aligned transcription for clinical notes, telemedicine, medical dictation, and patient intake. Self-hosted deployment for full compliance.
- **Finance**: Secure voice processing for trading floors, client calls, and compliance workflows. Self-hosted options and retention controls for regulated data.
- **Legal**: Privileged audio stays in your perimeter. Transcription for depositions, client intake, and matter workflows without training on your data.
- **Developers**: Build voice features with a familiar API. Drop-in OpenAI SDK replacement with better pricing and privacy.
- **Meeting transcription**: Real-time streaming with speaker diarization for meeting notes, action items, and searchable archives.
- **Content creation**: Clean mode produces publication-ready transcripts from interviews, podcasts, and video narration.
- **Customer support**: Transcribe support calls for quality assurance, training, and compliance with automatic speaker separation.

## Links

- Homepage: https://privocio.com
- Pricing: https://privocio.com/pricing
- API Documentation: https://privocio.com/docs
- Free Transcription Tool: https://privocio.com/transcribe
- Supported Languages: https://privocio.com/en/languages
- Blog: https://privocio.com/blog
- Use Cases Hub: https://privocio.com/use-cases
- Use Case — AI Agents: https://privocio.com/use-cases/ai-agents
- Use Case — Healthcare: https://privocio.com/use-cases/healthcare
- Use Case — Developers: https://privocio.com/use-cases/developers
- Use Case — Finance: https://privocio.com/use-cases/finance
- Use Case — Legal: https://privocio.com/use-cases/legal
- SDK Hub: https://privocio.com/sdk
- SDK — Python: https://privocio.com/sdk/python
- SDK — JavaScript: https://privocio.com/sdk/javascript
- Comparison Hub: https://privocio.com/compare
- Comparison — Privocio vs OpenAI Whisper: https://privocio.com/compare/privocio-vs-openai-whisper
- Comparison — Privocio vs AWS Transcribe: https://privocio.com/compare/privocio-vs-aws-transcribe
- Comparison — Privocio vs Google STT: https://privocio.com/compare/privocio-vs-google-speech-to-text
- Guide — Migrate from OpenAI Whisper: https://privocio.com/guides/migrate-from-openai-whisper
- Security: https://privocio.com/security
- Integrations Hub: https://privocio.com/integrations
- Integration — OpenAI SDK: https://privocio.com/integrations/openai-sdk
- Integration — LangChain (pattern): https://privocio.com/integrations/langchain
- Blog — Python STT tutorial: https://privocio.com/blog/python-speech-to-text-api
- Blog — JavaScript STT tutorial: https://privocio.com/blog/javascript-speech-to-text-api
- Blog — OpenAI Whisper alternative: https://privocio.com/blog/openai-whisper-api-alternative
- Blog — LangChain voice agent: https://privocio.com/blog/langchain-voice-agent-privocio
- Privacy Policy: https://privocio.com/legal/privacy-policy
- Terms of Service: https://privocio.com/legal/terms-of-service
- Contact: hello@privocio.com

## Company

Privocio is operated by The Useless Company PTE LTD. The product is designed and built for teams and developers who believe voice infrastructure should be private, predictable, and developer-friendly.