SuperWhisper for Alfred

Use Alfred to Control SuperWhisper - AI Powered Voice to Text

~ Video Overview & Setup ~

ABOUT

This Alfred workflow is designed to enhance your experience with SuperWhisper, an INCREDIBLE AI-powered text tool that offers dictation/transcription capabilities and access to both local and cloud language models. Please note that this workflow is not official and serves as an alternative for controlling SuperWhisper efficiently.

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MAIN FEATURES

• Quickly open SuperWhisper's settings.

• Change recording modes with ease.

• Start or stop recording directly from within Alfred.

• Activate and start recording in a specific mode instantly.

• Customizable hotkeys to activate and record in user-defined modes.

• Use Alfred’s text view to check history items from SuperWhisper, to see a parsed version of their JSON file (convenient for debugging), or draft editing your results.

• Filter your recording history by results or by voice. Once filtered by result or by voice you can also filter by date (MM/dd).

• Set two favorite modes and quickly start recording on them from the main menu (or with custom hotkeys/external trigger).

• While on the main menu, press CMD C on any option to copy the last SuperWhisper result to your clipboard, or press CMD Y to have a ‘quick-look’ of your JSON file.

• Fully control the workflow using Alfred's bar, keyboard shortcuts, or an external trigger.

• Supports fuzzy search and filtering. This allows you to—for example—filter ‘Super Mode’ by simply typing ‘sm’ while in the modes menu.

• Optional 'copySelect helper'. If recording is triggered by using the Workflow and the user has text selected, it will be copied to the clipboard. This is particularly useful for users that have modes with the 'use copied text' feature in SuperWhisper; if no text is selected when triggering the recording, nothing will happen.

• If you have Keyboard Maestro, a macro group allows the display of your current mode on the Menu Bar. This also includes options for easily switching the SuperWisper recording window ON/OFF, using action modes, and setting up voice commands (experimental).

NOTE: Some workflow configuration options marked as experimental rely on AppleScript, and compatibility with system in languages other than English may vary.

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REQUIREMENTS

• SuperWhisper has to be running.

• Additional optional/experimental features require Keyboard Maestro macro group from the LATEST RELEASE. Make sure to read about its use. If you don't have Keyboard Maestro installed, avoid activating this option in the Workflow's configuration to prevent potential errors.

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HOW TO

Controlling this workflow is straightforward, but there are some things to consider:

• All available custom Hotkeys have notes to indicate their function.

• The main menu, modes, and history menus have additional options with modifiers. Make sure to read and familiarize yourself with these to make the most of the workflow.

• For the History Filters, there's a secret modifier combination, CMD + OPT + RETURN. This will copy your system prompt, together with your dictation, and the result. Works for items opened on Alfred's text view as well.

• Alfred's script filter features, such as CMD L for large text, CMD Y to quicklook a file, CMD C to copy, and Alfred Actions, have been integrated into the workflow and perform different functions depending on the current menu.

  • While on the main menu, all the above will perform actions on the latest result or its JSON file.
  • While on the modes menu, CMD C will copy its deep link, CMD Y and Alfred Actions will lead to the JSON configuration file of the selected mode. This allows for easy revealing of the mode, duplicating it, directly opening it and modifying it, etc. If you modify the mode's JSON file directly, a restart of SuperWhisper may be required for the changes to take place.
  • While on the History filters, CMD C will copy the filtered item (voice or AI), CMD L will show it in Large Text, CMD Y and Alfred Actions will act directly on its JSON file.

• Hotkeys have been color-coded as follows:

  • Blue: Quick access to the workflow menus and its main options.
  • Yellow: Non-essential, but convenient for pro-users.
  • Orange: They activate and record in specific modes.
  • Green: Snippets for pasting the last voice, result, both, or including system prompt.

• The "copySelect" helper tool which is activated in the workflow configuration works like other SuperWhisper features that use your system's accessibility API. Depending on your front app, the accessibility features may or may not be fully supported or work as expected (I'm talking about you, Arc). That's why I suggest using the Keyboard Maestro macros together with this config setting - as it will show you clearly if the tool successfully copied your selected text or not.

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“CUSTOM MODE” HOTKEYS

In addition to the two favorite modes and super mode hotkeys, users can set up six additional hotkeys. If you need more than six or require options—like activating a mode without triggering record—, consider using the external trigger. This prevents potential functionality loss with future workflow updates.

To set up your custom hotkeys you need to:

1. Open the modes menu in Alfred.
2. CMD C on your chosen mode to copy its deep link.
3. Go into Alfred’s settings, SuperWhisper’s workflow editor, and double click the variables block (pink color-coded) next to the hotkey you want to setup.
4. Paste the deep link in the right field of theUrl.
5. Double click the hotkey block and choose your favorite keyboard shortcut :)

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THE EXTERNAL TRIGGER

Using the external trigger provides total control over this workflow's features, whether you're automating tasks, maximizing functionality, or seeking additional custom hotkeys. You can utilize the external trigger through either Alfred's AppleScript or URL scheme.

This workflow’s external trigger is sw .

To activate and/or record with different modes, sw expects the following parameters comma separated: [action],[deepLink],[modeName]

Use those placeholders as follows:

• [action] can be openModeRecord to activate and record, or openMode to simply activate the given mode.
  • There is an exception. If you want to trigger 'Super Mode’ externally, [action] can be activateSuperM, or activateRecordSuperM . No additional arguments are necessary for this case.
• You can grab the [deepLink] of your mode as mentioned above, from within the modes menu.
• [modeName] is only used for the notifications, in those cases that you activate the mode without recording.

Examples:

• openModeRecord,superwhisper://mode?key=custom-HWEE
• openMode,superwhisper://mode?key=custom-HWEE,Dictate in English
• activateSuperM

👇️ Additionally, `sw` can receive any of the the following arguments by itself:

The Argument	The Action
	If there’s no argument sent. The main menu of the workflow will open.
selectMode	Opens the modes menu.
selectHistoryResult	Opens History Filtered by result.
selectHistoryVoice	Opens History Filtered by voice.
settings	Opens SuperWhisper’s settings.
wsettings	Opens the workflow’s configuration window.
revealModes	Reveals the modes folder in Finder.
record	Toggles Recording
activateRecordFavA	Activates and records on favorite mode “A”
activateRecordFavB	Activates and records on favorite mode “B”
history	Opens history tab in SuperWhisper
viewLastResult	Opens the last result in Alfred’s Text View. It will try to get the LLM Result. If no LLM was used, it will get the transcribed dictation.
editLastResult	Opens a temporary edit view with the last result.
copyLast	Copies the last result to your clipboard.
viewLastJSON	Opens a parsed version of the last JSON file in Alfred’s Text View.
revealJson	Reveals the last JSON file in Finder.

If you use SuperWhisper's feature to include clipboard text as context for AI, the workflow has a built-in copySelect small CLI tool which you set in the configuration of the workflow (and is activated when using Alfred to start a recording), but you can also use the external trigger copySelect for this. When triggered, it checks if you have text selected - if you do, it copies it to your clipboard. If nothing is selected, it does nothing. You can map this to the same keyboard shortcut you use for SuperWhisper using tools like Karabiner-Elements. This way, whether you use the workflow or SuperWhisper's default shortcut to record, selected text will always be copied automatically.

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THE KM MACROS

This is an experimental macro group which adds extra features to an already versatile app. Here's what it can do:

1. Show current SW mode in menu bar (best with short mode names).
2. Show recording window status (Δ for active, ∇ for inactive).
3. Show the "action mode" status when active (⏎ for PasteResult, ⇄ for PasteChat).
4. Show "copySelect" indicator for a few seconds when you've activated this in the Alfred workflow and have selected text when starting a recording (⌘).
5. Toggle Recording Window setting on/off using its specific macro.
6. Set or change a new "action mode" to switch between pasting options (uses Keyboard Maestro to paste instead of SW).
7. Let users create custom Voice Commands to open websites, run Shortcuts, or perform other KM actions.

NOTE: users without the Alfred workflow will only miss 4, and 1 (mode display will only be auto updated when a new recording starts. For it to also update on mode switching you must trigger the 'SW Menu Bar' macro).

KM MACROS SETUP

1. If you're not using SuperWhisper's default folder (~/Documents/superwhisper), update the path in the "SW Action_Trigger" macro.
2. In SuperWhisper settings, turn OFF "Close window automatically" and "Paste result text". You can keep Recording window on, but it's not required. You can toggle this setting with the "SW Window Toggle" macro (it will quickly restart SW).
3. Make sure you have activated the "KM Macro Group" option in Alfred's workflow configuration.
4. The Recording Window toggle performs the switch directly on SuperWhisper's preferences. It is suggested you backup this file in case of any errors: "~/Library/Preferences/com.superduper.superwhisper.plist".

Why turn off auto-paste and auto-close:

• Action modes will handle closing the recording window (if there's one) and pasting.
• Voice commands will also close the recording window IF the setting is ON.

In the end, you'll have the same auto-pasting and auto-closing features from SuperWhisper, but you'll control them through this macro group and the new action modes.

KM MACROS HOW TO

"SW Menu Bar" macro

• Run it once and your menu bar will show your recording window status and current SuperWhisper mode.
• The macro runs automatically when you switch modes using the Alfred workflow, keeping the displayed mode current.
• This macro will also run automatically with each new recording (by using the 'SW Action_Trigger' macro).

"PasteChat", "PasteResult", and "Action_Set" macros

• "AM - PasteChat" and "AM - PasteResult" activate action modes. They're optional - you can get the same results triggering the "SW Action_Set" macro with parameters (pasteResult or pasteChat) through AppleScript.
• When you turn ON PasteChat or PasteResult, you'll see an icon in your menu bar. To turn it OFF, just run the same macro again (or run "SW Action_Set" by itself).
• To test an action mode, be in an input field. PasteResult works like SuperWhisper's auto-paste: closes the recording window and pastes your result. PasteChat pastes both your voice and the result. PasteChat works great with SuperWhisper modes that have "use application context" on, allowing for back-and-forth interactions with LLMs.
• If you assign a convenient keyboard shortcut/trigger to PasteChat & PasteResult, you can easily switch between using the recording window, pasting the result automatically, or pasting voice & AI at once. You can add one more option in the mix with the "SW Window Toggle" macro.

"SW Window Toggle" macro

• Toggles SuperWhisper's "recording window enabled" setting.
• Since this is being edited outside the app, SuperWhisper will have a quick restart to update the new setting.

"SW Action_Trigger" macro

• Runs automatically with new recordings. No need to be triggered by you.
• Updates the folder trigger for "SW Action_Action" macro.
• Only needs changes if you do not have SuperWhisper's default location for the recordings folder (~/Documents/superwhisper/recordings).

"SW Action_Action" macro

• Runs automatically when your dictation is processed and creates a meta.JSON file. No need to be triggered by you.
• Handles action modes.
• Includes the configuration of voice commands.

Voice Commands

• The "SW Action_Action" macro reads your transcription to spot command phrases and act on them.
• Comes with five commands: "ask google," "ask youtube," "ask perplexity," "ask openai," and "ask claude." You may add more by customizing the macro.
• Best used with modes that don't have LLM processing in SuperWhisper, or you'll wait for processing that won't be used.

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CLOSING

Please be aware that since this workflow is non-official, it may require occasional fine-tuning due to updates or unforeseen bugs. Your feedback and contributions are highly appreciated to improve its functionality.

For advanced users wanting to get more out of SuperWhisper, Karabiner-Elements is a great tool to explore. This app lets you remap keys which you could use to activate custom modes, move your recording trigger anywhere you want, create advanced shortcuts without using common ones, and set up complex key combinations. As an example, I currently use F+G keys to start recording (which also works with press-and-hold for quick dictations). I also have an entire layer on my keyboard's layer with letter "a" to move around different modes, preview/edit my last result with Alfred, toggle actions of the KM macros, or quickly jump to different menus of the workflow. I do all of this without loosing any common modifier combination.

If you found this workflow useful, how about buying me a coffee?