Using Voice Input
Describing a project out loud is often faster than typing it, especially on a phone. Click the Dictate button, say what you want, and Buildify writes it into the prompt box for you.
Where you can dictate
The Dictate button is the round microphone icon next to the send button. It appears in two places:
- The prompt box on your dashboard, when you're starting a new project
- The chat box inside a project, when you're asking for changes
Dictating a prompt
- Click the Dictate button
- The first time, your browser asks for permission to use your microphone — choose Allow
- The button turns red and starts pulsing, and a timer counts up. Buildify is listening
- Say what you want to build
- Click the button again to stop
- Your words appear in the box a moment later
Dictated text is added to the box, not sent. Nothing is submitted until you click send, so you can read it over, fix anything that came out wrong, and add more by typing or dictating again.
If there's already text in the box, the new text is added to the end rather than replacing it. You can start a prompt by typing and finish it by talking.
Recording limits
- Two minutes per clip. The timer turns amber about 15 seconds before the limit. If you hit it, Buildify stops and transcribes what it captured — nothing is lost.
- Roughly 10 recordings a minute, and 200 a day. If you go over, you'll see a message asking you to wait a minute or try again tomorrow. These are generous for normal use.
For anything longer than a couple of minutes, dictate it in a few passes — each one adds to the box.
Recording stops on its own if you look away
To make sure your microphone is never live without you knowing, Buildify stops recording when you:
- Switch to another browser tab or app
- Scroll the button off screen, or swipe away from the chat on mobile
In each case it transcribes what it heard up to that point. Nothing is discarded.
Your audio is never saved. Clips are held in your browser's memory only, sent to be transcribed, and discarded — Buildify doesn't store the recording anywhere. See the Privacy Policy for more.
Writing prompts you'll dictate
Spoken prompts work best when you talk the way you'd explain the idea to a person. A few things that help:
- Say it in whole sentences. Buildify handles natural speech better than a list of keywords
- Pause between ideas rather than trailing off, so the transcript keeps its punctuation
- Read the transcript before you send — names, brands, and unusual spellings are the most common things to come out wrong
Everything in Writing Good Prompts applies to dictated prompts too.
If the Dictate button isn't there
The button is hidden when your browser can't support it, rather than failing when you click it. That happens when:
- You're in an in-app browser. Opening a link inside Facebook, Instagram, or a similar app gives an embedded browser where microphone access is unreliable. Open Buildify in Safari, Chrome, or your normal browser instead
- Your browser is too old, or doesn't support audio recording. Recent versions of Chrome, Edge, Safari, and Firefox all work
Voice input is also still rolling out, so it may not have reached your account yet.
Troubleshooting
"Microphone access is blocked." You've previously denied microphone permission for Buildify. Change it in your browser's site settings — usually the padlock or icon at the left of the address bar — then reload the page.
Nothing happened when I clicked Allow. If you dismissed the permission popup instead of answering it, just click Dictate again and your browser will re-ask.
"No microphone was found on this device." Your device has no microphone available, or another app has exclusive use of it. Close anything else that might be recording and try again.
"We didn't catch that — try again." The clip came back empty, usually because the microphone picked up silence. Check you're using the right input device and speak a little closer to it.
"Voice input is temporarily rate-limited." You've made a lot of recordings in a short time. Wait a minute and carry on.