Can ChatGPT Transcribe Audio? A Complete Guide to AI Transcription Tools

If you’ve ever stared at a long recording of a meeting, interview, podcast or focus group and thought, “Can ChatGPT just transcribe this audio for me?” — you’re not alone.

The short answer: yes, ChatGPT can transcribe audio in several ways, but with important limits, and it’s only one player in a fast-moving ecosystem of AI transcription tools.

In this guide from Transcribe Lingo, you’ll learn:

• What ChatGPT can and can’t do with audio today
• How it compares with tools like Microsoft Copilot, Google Gemini, Grok, Otter.ai, Camtasia, Audacity, Alexa and Apple Voice Memos
• When AI transcription is “good enough” – and when you need human experts instead
• Practical workflows to get accurate transcripts without spending your life pressing pause–play–type

By the end, you’ll know exactly which tool to use for each job – and when to let Transcribe Lingo handle the heavy lifting.

The quick answer: can ChatGPT transcribe audio?

Yes – but not in every context, and not for every user.

Today, ChatGPT can work with audio in a few main ways:

• Voice and dictation in the apps: when you speak to ChatGPT using voice, your audio is automatically transcribed to text first, then the model replies based on that transcript.
• Record mode (meetings and voice notes): on supported platforms (for example the macOS app for certain paid plans), ChatGPT can record up to around two hours of audio, transcribe it, and generate summaries and other outputs.
• Uploaded audio via file uploads (Plus/Team/Enterprise type plans): some interfaces allow audio files (MP3, MP4, WAV, M4A, etc.) to be uploaded and transcribed directly in ChatGPT, mainly for users on paid tiers with voice/file features enabled.
• API level (for developers): OpenAI offers dedicated speech-to-text models such as GPT-4o Transcribe and the Speech-to-Text API; apps built on these can “use ChatGPT” while the actual transcription is done by these audio models.

So the question “can ChatGPT transcribe audio?” turns into a more precise set of questions:

• What device and plan are you on?
• Are you speaking live, uploading a file, or trying to transcribe a video or YouTube link?
• How accurate and reliable does the result need to be?

Let’s break it down.

How ChatGPT transcribes audio today

1. Voice and dictation in the ChatGPT apps

When you tap the microphone icon in ChatGPT’s mobile or desktop apps, your spoken message is turned into text by a speech-to-text model, then sent into the chat as if you’d typed it.

That means:

• ChatGPT does transcribe what you say, even if you’re just using it for quick voice questions.
• You can usually see or review the transcript inside the conversation.

This answers a cluster of queries:

• “Can ChatGPT transcribe?” – Yes, for your voice messages.
• “Can ChatGPT transcribe voice memos?” – If you play a voice memo into the microphone (or record the memo directly in the app), ChatGPT can transcribe what it hears, but it’s not a dedicated “voice memo import” feature.
• “Is there an AI that transcribes audio to text?” – Yes. ChatGPT is one of many; we’ll compare others shortly.

This live voice transcription is handy for quick notes, ideas, or short messages – but it’s not always the best option for long recordings or complex audio.

2. Record mode for meetings and longer sessions

OpenAI has added a record mode that can capture meetings, calls and voice notes (up to roughly two hours), then transcribe and summarise the session automatically on supported paid plans.

This effectively turns ChatGPT into:

• A meeting notetaker
• A voice note capture tool
• A way to quickly turn spoken content into transcripts, summaries and action items

If your question is “can ChatGPT transcribe audio files?” in the sense of recording a live meeting or conversation directly – record mode is the relevant feature.

However, availability still depends on:

• Your plan (Plus, Team, Enterprise, etc.)
• Your platform (for example macOS app vs. browser vs. mobile)

So always check the current feature list in your own account.

3. Uploading audio files into ChatGPT

Many people literally mean:

“Can ChatGPT transcribe an audio file I already have?”

Recent guides and user reports show that for ChatGPT Plus and similar tiers, you can often:

1. Start a new chat with a capable model.
2. Attach an audio file (e.g. MP3, MP4, WAV, M4A) as you would a document.
3. Ask ChatGPT to “transcribe this audio”.
4. Receive a text transcript, which you can then clean up, translate or summarise.

This directly addresses:

• “Can ChatGPT transcribe audio files?” – Yes, where uploads are supported.
• “Can ChatGPT transcribe audio?” – Yes, via voice, record mode or file uploads.
• “Can ChatGPT transcribe audio and then summarise it?” – Yes; summarising transcripts is exactly what it’s good at.

Because the product evolves quickly, the exact behaviour changes over time. If your account doesn’t yet show file upload or audio options, tools like OpenAI’s API or specialist transcription platforms may be more reliable.

4. Using ChatGPT with the OpenAI Speech-to-Text API

Behind the scenes, OpenAI offers specialist transcription models:

• GPT-4o Transcribe – a newer speech-to-text model optimised for better accuracy and language recognition.
• Speech-to-Text API (formerly Whisper) – for developers who want to send audio and receive transcripts via an API.

You won’t necessarily see these names when chatting with ChatGPT, but many third-party apps that claim to “use ChatGPT to transcribe audio” are really:

1. Using these audio models to transcribe
2. Then using ChatGPT or similar models to clean, summarise or analyse the text

This is exactly the kind of hybrid approach Transcribe Lingo uses internally – but with human linguists in the loop to check, correct and format transcripts for serious use.

Step-by-step: using ChatGPT to transcribe audio

Scenario 1: quick dictation and voice notes

Best for: ideas, notes, personal reminders, very short monologues.

Typical workflow:

1. Open the ChatGPT mobile or desktop app.
2. Tap the microphone icon.
3. Speak clearly into your device (as if you were using a dictaphone).
4. Let ChatGPT finish transcribing and send the message.
5. Ask it to tidy the transcript, summarise key points, or format it into minutes or an email.

This is ideal when you’re thinking:

• “I just need a rough transcript of what I’m saying right now.”
• “Can AI transcribe audio to text without any setup?”

Yes, AI can transcribe audio to text in real time, but expect occasional mis-hears, especially with names, jargon or background noise.

Scenario 2: meetings, calls and interviews

Best for: internal meetings, planning sessions, simple interviews where you mainly need notes, not a legal record.

Here you’re essentially asking:

• “Can ChatGPT transcribe a video call?”
• “Can AI transcribe a phone call?”

Using ChatGPT’s record mode (where available):

1. Start record mode before the meeting.
2. Let ChatGPT capture the conversation.
3. After the session, review the transcript and AI-generated summary, then correct any errors.

Important:

• Always obtain participants’ consent before recording.
• Do not rely on AI outputs alone for legal, medical or regulatory records – those should be handled by qualified human professionals, which is exactly where Transcribe Lingo comes in.

If you need clean, court-ready or publication-ready transcripts of interviews, hearings or focus groups, send the audio to Transcribe Lingo and we’ll combine AI speed with human precision.

Scenario 3: pre-recorded audio, podcasts and webinars

Here, people usually ask:

• “Can ChatGPT transcribe a video?”
• “Can ChatGPT transcribe videos or YouTube videos?”
• “Can ChatGPT transcribe YouTube videos directly?”

There are three main approaches:

1. Direct file upload (if your plan supports it)
   • Download the audio or video file (e.g. MP4, MP3).
   • Upload it into ChatGPT and request a transcript and summary.
2. Use a dedicated AI transcription tool first, then ChatGPT
   • Use a tool like Otter.ai, Camtasia Audiate or another speech-to-text service to generate the raw transcript.
   • Paste the transcript into ChatGPT to clean, structure and summarise it.
3. For YouTube specifically
   • Use a YouTube transcription tool (some, like Otter, can transcribe YouTube audio directly).
   • Then use ChatGPT to improve and repurpose the text.

This answers:

• “Can AI transcribe a video / a YouTube video?” – Yes, but you might need a separate step or tool to extract the audio first.
• “Can ChatGPT transcribe a video?” – Yes, via file upload or by feeding it a transcript generated by another tool.

If you’re dealing with multi-speaker research recordings, foreign-language audio or sensitive content, you will get much better results by letting Transcribe Lingo handle the transcription and QC rather than relying on AI alone.

What about music and complex audio?

You might also wonder:

• “Can AI transcribe music?”

Most of the tools in this guide – including ChatGPT, GPT-4o Transcribe, Gemini, Otter, Copilot’s transcription features, Camtasia and so on – are optimised for speech, not music.

• They may partially transcribe lyrics if the vocal is clear.
• They will not reliably create sheet music or fully annotated musical scores.

For musical notation, you’ll need specialised music-transcription software or a human musician; AI speech-to-text is not designed for that job.

Can other AI tools transcribe audio to text?

The search volume around this topic is huge, with questions like:

• “Can Copilot transcribe audio to text?”
• “Can Gemini transcribe audio?”
• “Can Grok transcribe audio?”
• “Can Otter AI transcribe phone calls?”
• “Can AI transcribe audio to text in OneNote / Word?”

Here’s a practical overview.

Microsoft Copilot, Word and OneNote

Can Copilot transcribe audio to text?
Copilot itself is more of an assistant layer, but Microsoft 365 now includes powerful transcription features:

• In Word for the web, you can go to Home → Dictate → Transcribe, then either record speech or upload an audio file (WAV, MP4, M4A, MP3) and get a full transcript with speakers separated.
• OneNote on Windows also has Record & Transcribe, letting you record or upload audio and automatically get a text transcript linked to your notes.

So:

• “Can Copilot transcribe an audio file?” – Indirectly yes, by using the built-in Transcribe features in Word or OneNote alongside Copilot.
• “Can OneNote transcribe?” – Yes, on supported versions, it can record or upload audio and transcribe it.

This is useful for internal meetings and lectures, but again, if you need guaranteed accuracy for legal, medical or research work, you’ll still want human review.

Google Gemini

Can Gemini transcribe audio?
Yes. Google’s Gemini models support audio input and audio transcription, especially via the Gemini API and Vertex AI tools:

• Official docs show examples of providing audio and receiving a full transcription with timestamps, alongside summaries or analysis.

So if you’re asking:

• “Can AI transcribe audio to text?” – Gemini is one strong option.
• Gemini can also be used to help apps transcribe podcasts and long recordings at scale.

Grok by xAI

Can Grok transcribe audio?

Grok is primarily a chat assistant, but:

• When you interact with Grok using voice on X, your speech is transcribed for the model to understand.

For now, Grok is less about bulk audio-file transcription and more about conversational use, but the underlying tech can certainly handle voice-to-text.

Otter.ai

Otter is frequently asked about:

• “Can Otter AI transcribe phone calls?”
• “Does Otter transcribe other languages?”

The answer:

• Otter is built specifically for meeting and call transcription, including live meetings, uploaded audio and YouTube videos.
• Otter currently supports English (US and UK), Spanish, French and Japanese for transcription.

So yes:

• Otter can transcribe phone calls, video meetings and YouTube audio.
• Otter transcribes other languages, but only a limited set compared with some developer-focused APIs.

Otter is a solid choice for team meetings and everyday calls, but for multi-lingual, domain-heavy or confidential projects, a professional service like Transcribe Lingo gives you more control over quality and data handling.

Alexa, Apple Voice Memos, Audacity and Camtasia

These tools also show up in search:

Alexa

• Alexa already uses automatic speech recognition to convert your voice into text internally to understand commands.
• Features like Call Captioning and Live Translation can display live captions for calls, which is a kind of transcription, though it’s mainly aimed at accessibility, not exporting full transcripts.

So:

• “Can Alexa transcribe conversations?” – Alexa can internally transcribe speech and display captions in some scenarios, but it’s not a general-purpose, exportable transcription tool for your meetings in the way Otter or Transcribe Lingo are.

Apple Voice Memos

• In recent iOS versions, Voice Memos can show live transcription while you record, and you can view the transcript afterwards.

So:

• “Can Apple Voice Memos be transcribed?” – Yes, on supported iPhones with newer iOS versions, the app will transcribe recordings for you.

Audacity

• By default, Audacity is an audio editor, not a speech-to-text tool. Older threads make this very clear.
• Newer guides show that, with plugins based on Whisper, Audacity can now be extended to transcribe audio to text inside the app.

So:

• “Can Audacity transcribe audio to text?” – Not out-of-the-box, but yes if you install an AI plugin.

Camtasia

• TechSmith’s Camtasia now offers speech-to-text captioning, and its Audiate product uses AI (including OpenAI’s Whisper) to transcribe audio into captions and text in multiple languages.

So:

• “Can Camtasia transcribe audio?” – Yes, current versions can automatically create captions and transcripts for your videos.

AI transcription vs professional transcription: what’s the real trade-off?

AI has made it incredibly easy to:

• Capture rough transcripts in minutes
• Search across recordings
• Generate summaries, bullet points and highlights

But there are hard limits you need to keep in mind:

Where AI tools (including ChatGPT) work well

• Internal meetings and brainstorming – where minor errors are acceptable
• Personal notes and planning – dictating ideas, journals, to-do lists
• Content drafting – podcasts, webinars and talks where you’ll heavily edit the text anyway
• Low-risk languages and accents – clear, single-speaker audio in common languages

Where AI alone is risky

For the following, you should not rely solely on “can ChatGPT transcribe audio?” as your solution:

• Legal proceedings and court bundles
• Clinical, medical and healthcare notes
• Insurance interviews and investigations
• Market research focus groups where nuance matters
• Multilingual projects with code-switching and jargon

Here you need:

• Guaranteed accuracy and consistency
• Humans who understand context, culture and subject-matter terminology
• Confidential handling and clear accountability

This is where Transcribe Lingo is built to outperform generic AI tools.

How Transcribe Lingo uses AI plus humans for better transcripts

At Transcribe Lingo, we don’t treat ChatGPT or other AI tools as a replacement for professionals. Instead, we use them as accelerators inside a carefully controlled workflow.

A typical project might look like this:

1. Secure upload of your audio or video via encrypted channels
2. AI-assisted rough transcription (using best-in-class models where appropriate)
3. Human transcription and editing by trained linguists familiar with your domain
4. Second-pass quality control to catch errors in numbers, dates, names and technical terms
5. Formatting and time-coding to your exact requirements
6. Optional translation into other languages, handled by professional translators

You get:

• The speed of AI
• The accuracy, nuance and accountability of human experts
• A single team responsible for the final text, not a pile of unverified machine output

If you need transcripts you can show to a regulator, submit in evidence, or publish under your brand, the safest route is simple:

Upload your files to Transcribe Lingo and let us deliver a transcript you can trust.

How to choose the right transcription option

When you’re deciding what to use, run through this quick checklist:

1. How critical is accuracy?
   • Internal notes only → AI tools (ChatGPT, Otter, Gemini, Copilot) can be fine.
   • Legal, medical, regulatory, research… → Use Transcribe Lingo.
2. How complex is the audio?
   • Single speaker, clear audio, common language → AI plus a quick manual review.
   • Many speakers, cross-talk, heavy accents, multiple languages → human-led transcription.
3. What’s your time and budget?
   • Need a rough transcript now for your own use → ChatGPT, Gemini or Otter.
   • Need polished, formatted transcripts your organisation can rely on → invest in professional services.

Whenever in doubt, send us a sample file at Transcribe Lingo. We’ll show you the difference between “AI only” and human-checked, project-ready output.

Frequently asked questions about ChatGPT and AI transcription

1. Can ChatGPT transcribe audio accurately enough for professional use?

For simple, clear recordings, ChatGPT and similar AI tools often get you a usable draft. But:

• They can still mis-hear names, numbers, dates and technical terms.
• They may struggle with strong accents, cross-talk and background noise.

For high-stakes content (legal, medical, compliance, research), you should always have a human transcriptionist review or redo the transcript. That’s exactly what Transcribe Lingo’s teams are here to do.

2. Can ChatGPT transcribe a video or YouTube video?

Yes, but usually through one of two routes:

• Uploading the video or its audio track directly to ChatGPT (if your plan and interface allow).
• Using another tool (like Otter.ai, Camtasia or a YouTube transcript extractor) to generate a rough transcript, then asking ChatGPT to clean, structure and summarise it.

So if you’re asking “can ChatGPT transcribe a video / YouTube video?”, the answer is “yes, with the right workflow” – but for formal transcripts, a professional service is still strongly recommended.

3. Is there an AI that transcribes audio automatically without extra tools?

Yes. Several, in fact:

• ChatGPT – via voice, record mode, file uploads and API-powered tools
• Google Gemini – via audio understanding in the Gemini API and Vertex AI samples
• Microsoft 365 (Word, OneNote) – built-in Transcribe upload/record features
• Otter.ai – live meetings, calls, uploads and YouTube clips
• Camtasia Audiate – transcribes video audio to text and captions

The key is choosing based on context, accuracy needs and privacy requirements.

4. Can AI transcribe audio to text for multiple languages?

Yes – but language coverage varies:

• OpenAI’s speech-to-text models support many languages; Gemini and other cloud APIs also offer multi-language transcription.
• Otter currently covers English (US/UK), Spanish, French and Japanese.
• Some tools (like Camtasia Audiate or Audacity with plugins) support multiple languages but may still perform best in English.

For multilingual interviews, code-switching, or non-standard dialects, you’ll almost always get better results with human linguists reviewing or performing the transcription.

5. Can AI (or ChatGPT) replace human transcription entirely?

Not realistically, especially where:

• Accuracy must be near-perfect
• Content is technical, sensitive or regulated
• Context, tone and nuance matter

AI is brilliant at speed and rough drafts. Humans are still unmatched for:

• Understanding nuance, sarcasm and cultural references
• Handling complex multi-speaker audio
• Taking responsibility for final quality

That’s why Transcribe Lingo uses AI as a helper, not a replacement.

6. What’s the best way to get a reliable transcript from AI?

A practical approach:

1. Use an AI tool (ChatGPT, Gemini, Otter, Copilot’s Transcribe, etc.) to get a first draft.
2. Read through, correcting errors in names, numbers, dates and specialist terms.
3. If the stakes are high or the audio is difficult, send the file to Transcribe Lingo for a professional transcript instead of relying on your own proofing time.

This hybrid method balances speed, cost and risk.