Cicada: Real-Time Subtitles, Translation, and Meeting Notes for Developers
GitHub Open Source
Get live bilingual subtitles and structured notes on Mac, Windows, Linux, and Android without sending bots to your calls.
Repository snapshot
- Repository: wquguru/cicada
- Language: Swift
- License: Apache-2.0
- Stars: 2 143
- Forks: 370
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What it is
Cicada is an open-source application designed to provide live bilingual subtitles, simultaneous interpretation, and structured meeting notes across macOS, Windows, Linux, and Android. Rather than forcing you to invite external bot participants into your video calls, it taps directly into system audio to process speech in real time. On Apple silicon Macs, recognition runs entirely on-device, keeping your audio private.
Why it matters
Multilingual technical discussions and livestreams often lead to cognitive overload as you try to parse unfamiliar terminology on the fly. Cicada bridges the language barrier by listening to system audio, cleaning up misheard terms via context, and generating organized records including to-do items, summaries, and fishbone diagrams without routing data through proprietary meeting bots.
Key features
- Captures system audio directly without injecting bots into Zoom, Teams, or Google Meet.
- Runs speech recognition entirely on-device for Apple silicon Macs without external API keys.
- Translates speech and broadcasts your voice back in the target language when holding the talk key.
- Organizes notes into summaries, topics, to-dos, and a fishbone diagram with jump-to-line support.
- Separates speakers automatically using a local voiceprint model and retains audio locally.
Quick start
To inspect the source code, clone the repository:
git clone https://github.com/wquguru/cicada.gitWho should try it
Developers, open-source maintainers, and remote teams who frequently participate in cross-border calls, international conferences, or technical livestreams and need reliable local transcription.
Verdict
Cicada offers a robust, privacy-focused approach to live translation and meeting notes. While non-Mac platforms require an external AI service key for full functionality, its ability to operate locally without meeting bots makes it a valuable utility for daily remote collaboration.
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Curated from the repository README and metadata. No hands-on test is claimed; evaluate it in a sandbox before production use.