2026 Comparison

Hyprnote vs Shadow vs Ottex AI

An honest, side-by-side comparison of features, pricing, privacy, and technology. Find out which dictation tool fits your workflow.

Quick Overview

Ottex AI

Pricing

Free (BYOK, Local models), or pay-as-you-go (Ottex Provider)

Privacy

Excellent - Choose between Local models and BYOK. You control where data goes.

Key Strength

Free for personal use with BYOK/local models (vs $8-15/mo competitors), Gemini 3 Flash (99

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Hyprnote

Pricing

N/A

Privacy

Excellent - 100% Local, No data leaves machine.

Key Strength

Hyprnote lets you run your own AI models, works offline, respects your note structure, and ensures zero data ever leaves your device—total control

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Shadow

Pricing

$8/mo

Privacy

Great - Content not accessed except for processing

Key Strength

Shadow lets you build your own AI workflows to handle meeting follow-up tasks your way

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Pricing

Feature	Ottex AIDownload	Hyprnote	Shadow
Lifetime Price	Free (Local models, BYOK)	N/A	Free
Subscription	Free (BYOK, Local models), or pay-as-you-go (Ottex Provider)	N/A	$8/mo
Education Discount	Same pricing for all	N/A	N/A

Platform

Feature	Ottex AIDownload	Hyprnote	Shadow
Platforms	MacOS, iOS	MacOS	MacOS
Open Source

Technology

Feature	Ottex AIDownload	Hyprnote	Shadow
Transcription Engines	Cloud: Whisper, Gemini 3 Flash, Voxtral. Local: Whisper, Parakeet v3	Parakeet, Whisper	Whisper
Processing Options	Cloud (BYOK), Local	100% Local	100% Local
Model Selection
Apple Silicon Optimized
Memory Management	Excellent (~50MB)

Dictation

Feature	Ottex AIDownload	Hyprnote	Shadow
Dictation Type	Realtime, Post-Dictation	Post-Dictation	Realtime
Speed	<500msLocal <500ms Cloud 500ms–2s with Gemini 3 Flash	>500ms	>2 seconds
System-Wide Insertion
Trigger Options	Hotkey, Shortcut	Mouse	Hotkey (non-configurable), Autopilot
Language Auto Detection	100+ languages with Gemini 3 Flash. Mid-sentence language switching. Best multilingual quality available.
Context Awareness	Screenshot-based context analysis. Work modes per app (email, notes, code). Custom instructions per context.
Dictation History
Search		Search+Replace	Search

Text Processing

Feature	Ottex AIDownload	Hyprnote
Voice Corrections 'Scratch that', 'actually'
Precision Typing 'New line', 'new paragraph'	new line, new paragraph
Glossaries
Filler Word Removal
Auto-correction
Translation	via AI commands	Realtime

AI & Automation

Feature	Ottex AIDownload	Hyprnote	Shadow
AI Integration	BYOK - OpenRouter, Google AI, OpenAI, Anthropic, Mistral, OpenAI competible providers	LM Studio, Ollama, User-Provided API Access	App-Provided AI Access
Custom Prompts
Inline AI Commands Unique Ottex feature
AI Shortcuts
Meeting Summaries

Features

Feature	Ottex AIDownload	Hyprnote	Shadow
Menu Bar Access
Batch Transcription
Audio File Transcription
Video Transcription	With diarization (speaker separation)
Meeting Recording	With diarization (speaker separation)

Accessibility

Feature	Ottex AIDownload	Hyprnote	Shadow
Apple Shortcuts
Launcher Support Raycast, Alfred	Raycast, Alfred

Privacy

Feature	Ottex AIDownload	Hyprnote	Shadow
Privacy Policy	Excellent - Choose between Local models and BYOK. You control where data goes.	Excellent - 100% Local, No data leaves machine.	Great - Content not accessed except for processing

Why Ottex AI is the smart choice

While Hyprnote and Shadow have their strengths, Ottex AI gives you the best of both worlds: enterprise-grade accuracy via Gemini 3 Flash, complete privacy with Local models and BYOK, and zero subscription lock-in.

Best Value

Free forever with local models or your own API keys. Optional $9/mo premium is cheaper than competitors.

Multilingual King

Gemini 3 Flash supports 100+ languages with 99.1% accuracy and mid-sentence switching.

Inline AI

Don't just dictate. Command. "Fix grammar", "Make professional", "Translate" — all while you speak.

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Free for personal use • No credit card required