aTrain
aTrain is free, open-source software for automatically transcribing speech recordings used in qualitative research.
What aTrain is
aTrain is free, open-source software for automatically transcribing speech recordings used in qualitative research. It processes recordings on the user’s device, keeping recordings and transcripts off the internet. The program provides access to faster-whisper, an implementation of OpenAI’s Whisper model, and offers speaker identification through pyannote.audio so text segments can be associated with speakers. Language support is listed as 99 languages, while the BANDAS product page describes processing in 57 languages. Transcription files can be imported into ATLAS.ti and MAXQDA, with timestamps that connect text to the relevant audio. aTrain runs on Linux, macOS, Windows, and the web. CPU and NVIDIA GPU processing are supported, although GPU use requires the CUDA toolkit. Browser/server mode is experimental, and some functionality may be incomplete. The highest-quality model is estimated to take about three times the recording length on typical current mobile CPUs. AGPL-3.0 is the listed license.
Good
- Processes recordings locally
- Speaker identification with pyannote.audio
- Imports to ATLAS.ti and MAXQDA
- Supports CPU and NVIDIA GPU
- Free and open source
Watch out
- Browser/server mode is experimental
- GPU processing requires CUDA toolkit
- Highest-quality model can take three times audio length
Who it suits
aTrain suits qualitative researchers who need local speech transcription, speaker identification, and exports for ATLAS.ti or MAXQDA. It also fits users seeking a free, open-source tool across desktop platforms.
Verdict
aTrain combines local transcription, speaker labeling, and research-tool exports in a free, open-source package. Its experimental web mode and potentially lengthy highest-quality processing are important considerations.
The facts
Each one read from aTrain's own pages, with the date it was checked.
What it does
- GPU support
- aTrain can run on a CPU or an NVIDIA GPU; GPU use requires the CUDA toolkit.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Intended users
- The maker describes aTrain as a transcription tool for qualitative research and says researchers developed it.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Languages
- The product page says aTrain can process speech recordings in 57 languages.checked 11 Oct 2026
- License
- The project’s GitHub repository identifies its license as AGPL-3.0.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Notable limitation
- The product page estimates that its highest-quality model takes around three times the audio length on typical current mobile CPUs.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Offline processing
- It processes recordings on the user’s device and does not send recordings or transcripts to the internet.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- aTrain is a tool for automatically transcribing speech recordings for qualitative research.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Research integrations
- Its transcription files can be imported into ATLAS.ti and MAXQDA, with timestamps that let users play the corresponding audio segment.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Speaker detection
- Its speaker detection mode uses pyannote.audio to identify which speaker each text segment belongs to.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Transcription engine
- It provides access to faster-whisper, an implementation of OpenAI’s Whisper model.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Web mode
- The project describes a browser/server mode as experimental and notes that some browser-mode functionality may be incomplete.checked 4 Oct 2026
Where it runs
- macOS availability
- The download page lists a macOS build for Apple Silicon under version 1.2.4 and 1.2.2.checked 11 Oct 2026
- Platforms
- The project says packaged apps are available through Flathub for Linux and the Microsoft Store for Windows; it also documents pip installation and says macOS is CPU-only.checked 4 Oct 2026
- Windows and Linux downloads
- The download page lists current downloads for Windows and Linux.checked 11 Oct 2026
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