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HyperWhisper transcribes audio from your microphone. It does not directly capture system audio (the audio coming out of your speakers — Zoom calls, YouTube videos, podcasts, etc.). If you want to transcribe something playing on your computer, you have two options. A virtual audio cable is a small driver that creates a “fake” microphone that captures your system audio. Once installed, you can pick it as HyperWhisper’s input device and transcribe anything playing on your Mac or PC.
The most popular free option is BlackHole (open source, free):
1

Install BlackHole 2ch

Download from existential.audio/blackhole and run the installer.
2

Create a Multi-Output Device

Open Audio MIDI Setup (Spotlight → “Audio MIDI Setup”). Click + → Create Multi-Output Device, then tick both your Built-in Output (or speakers/headphones) and BlackHole 2ch.This lets you hear the audio while BlackHole captures it.
3

Set the Multi-Output Device as your system output

In System Settings → Sound → Output, pick the new multi-output device.
4

Pick BlackHole as HyperWhisper's input

In HyperWhisper, open Settings → Audio Input and select BlackHole 2ch.
5

Record

Start recording in HyperWhisper while audio is playing. The transcript will be the system audio.
Paid alternatives like Loopback offer a friendlier UI and per-app routing.

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Option 2 — Transcribe a recording after the fact

If you can record the meeting or video to a file (e.g. Zoom’s local recording, OBS, QuickTime, screen recorder), you can drop the file into HyperWhisper directly:
  • macOS: Click the menu bar icon → Transcribe File → pick your audio or video file.
  • Windows: Right-click the tray icon → Transcribe Audio File → pick your .wav, .mp3, or .m4a.
See Transcribe a File for the full walkthrough, supported formats, and provider file-size limits.
Native system-audio capture (without a virtual cable) is on our roadmap. If this is important to you, let us know at support@hyperwhisper.com — it helps us prioritize.