Listen Orb
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Create an API key

Your OpenAI or xAI key · billed by that provider · stored in Keychain

Start with 3 days free. Every 500 words you successfully dictate adds 1 day, up to 7 days total.

This guide is for cloud processing. Local processinguses downloaded models on your Mac and needs no API key.

Listen Orb is a paid Mac app. Polar sells the one-time Mac license for $99 one time. You can instead choose Start free trial during activation. That payment is not OpenAI or xAI credit.

Cloud transcription and optional AI polish use your own OpenAI or xAI API key. When setting up cloud processing, choose a provider and paste that provider's key. OpenAI is the default when no provider is saved. You can store both keys and switch later in Settings → AI Provider…. The active key is stored on your Mac and sent only to that provider as an Authorization header. Keys are never mixed. That provider bills the account that issued the key. Listen Orb does not have accounts, does not host speech, and does not sell tokens.

A ChatGPT Plus or Pro plan is not an OpenAI API key. SuperGrok, grok.com, Cursor, or an X login is not an xAI API key. During activation, Listen Orb checks the key against that provider's transcription route and explains authentication, project permission, quota, rate-limit, provider, and network failures without displaying the key.

The short version

Choose OpenAI or xAI, turn on that provider's API billing, create a key, paste it into the Listen Orb window, then grant Microphone, Accessibility, and Input Monitoring when macOS asks.

OpenAI key

  1. Open the OpenAI Platform

    Sign in at platform.openai.com with the OpenAI account you want to pay from. This is the developer site, not chat.openai.com.

  2. Turn on API billing

    Open the API billing overview. Add a payment method or credits, and look at auto-recharge before you confirm. Every committed dictation uses Realtime transcription. Standard or Contextual polish can make a second Responses request; Off does not.

  3. Create a project for this Mac

    In Settings, under Organization, open Projects and choose Create project. Name it Listen Orb. Keeping this separate makes it easy to see what the overlay costs and to revoke the key later.

  4. Create a secret key

    Open API keys for that project. Choose Create new secret key. Name it something like Mac dictation. The default All permission is simplest. For a restricted key, allow the permissions required for both Realtime transcription and Responses-based polish. See OpenAI's API key permission guidance. Dashboard labels can change, so confirm access to both APIs instead of relying on a single permission name.

  5. Copy it once

    OpenAI shows the full key a single time. It usually starts with sk-. Copy it immediately. Do not paste it into chat, email, a support ticket, or a screenshot.

  6. Paste it into Listen Orb

    Return to the activation window, choose OpenAI if you have not already, and paste the key. Choose Validate key. After OpenAI accepts the transcription route, the app writes that key to Keychain item listen-orb-openai. The API key is never written to logs or plaintext files, and is never printed. macOS may then ask for your Mac login password. That unlocks Keychain on this Mac so the key can be saved here. Listen Orb never sees that password. If the dialog offers Always Allow, choose that so later launches do not ask again. If you already dismissed that window, start the app again, or right-click the capsule and choose AI Provider….

  7. Grant the three Mac permissions

    The first listen may ask for access. If it does not, open System Settings → Privacy & Security and enable the app you launched (Listen Orb, or Terminal if you started it from there) under Microphone, Accessibility, and Input Monitoring. Quit and reopen that app after changing a permission.

Activation validates the Realtime transcription connection. A restricted key without Responses access may pass that check but fail later when Standard or Contextual polish is enabled.

xAI key

  1. Open the xAI console

    Sign in at console.x.ai with the xAI account you want to pay from. This is the API console, not grok.com chat.

  2. Turn on API billing

    In the console, open API billing and add prepaid credits or another billed payment method. xAI bills that account separately from SuperGrok and from the Listen Orb license. See current xAI API pricing in xAI's docs; Listen Orb does not publish or resell those rates.

  3. Create an API key

    Create a secret key for this Mac. It usually starts with xai-. Copy it once. Do not paste it into chat, email, a support ticket, or a screenshot.

  4. Paste it into Listen Orb

    On first launch, choose xAI, paste the key, and choose Validate key. Later, store or replace it from Settings → AI Provider…. After xAI accepts the speech-to-text route, the app writes that key to Keychain item listen-orb-xai. An unused OpenAI key stays in Keychain if you already saved one. Keys are never mixed. Listen Orb does not host Grok.

Why macOS asks for your Mac password

That password is your Mac login, not a Listen Orb password. macOS uses it to unlock Keychain so this app can write a few items on this computer. Listen Orb never receives it and does not store it.

Keychain holds a few Listen Orb items, including your OpenAI API key (listen-orb-openai), an optional xAI API key (listen-orb-xai), the local trial start marker, and a Polar license if you buy one. Other Keychain items are not read. The API key is never sent to Listen Orb, written to logs or plaintext files, or printed. You may see the password dialog once per item the first time.

What you are paying for

Polar takes the one-time Listen Orb license. That is the Mac app. Buy Listen Orb — $99 one time. How the license works.

Each listen also sends audio to the active provider. OpenAI uses Realtime transcription; xAI uses speech-to-text. When polishing is on, a second direct request edits the transcript. The Polish menu offers Off, Standard polish, and Contextual polish. Standard polish is the default and sends transcript text only. Contextual polish is opt-in and may additionally send the normalized destination category, application name and bundle identifier, selected text, and up to 500 characters before and after the cursor. Clean language is a separate setting, enabled by default, that changes only the editing instruction. This usage appears on that provider's invoice. See the API usage and billing guide for what creates usage and where to review provider records.

If something fails

The active key is stored on your Mac and sent only to that provider as an Authorization header. Keys are never mixed. See privacy for the exact data sent in each polish mode.

Create an API Key for Listen Orb