GroqAndroid

A minimalist Android speech-to-text keyboard and floating voice input bubble, powered by the Groq Whisper API.
Transcribe speech directly into any app — no cloud account needed, just a free API key.

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Features

Speech-to-Text Keyboard

• Tap to dictate: Tap the microphone, speak, tap again — transcribed text appears instantly
• 16 languages: Auto-detect or choose from Dutch, English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Arabic, Turkish, Polish, Russian, and Slovak
• Custom dictionary: Add names, jargon, and technical terms for better recognition
• Word replacements: Auto-correct frequently misrecognized words
• Punctuation keys: Quick access to , . ? ! and common symbols
• Quotes wrapping: Select text and tap " " to wrap it in quotes
• Select all: Long-press spacebar to select all text
• Continuous backspace: Hold backspace for rapid deletion

Floating Voice Bubble

• Use with any keyboard: Keep Gboard (or any keyboard) active — the floating bubble handles voice input independently
• Works in any app: WhatsApp, Signal, SimpleNote, browsers, and more
• Draggable: Move the bubble anywhere on screen, snaps to edges
• Long-press to close: Hold the bubble to reveal a close button
• Notification controls: Re-show the bubble or stop the service from the notification
• Auto-show in chats (optional): Automatically appear when a text field is focused, hide when leaving
• Clipboard fallback: For apps that don't support direct text insertion (like Claude), text is copied to clipboard for manual paste

Audio Cues

• Dictation sounds: Hear a short cue when recording starts and stops (matching OpenWhispr sounds)
• Toggleable: Enable or disable sound cues in settings

Whisper Model Selection

• V3 Turbo: Faster transcription, great for everyday use
• V3 Full: Higher accuracy, better for difficult audio or accents

Privacy & Security

• API key stored encrypted: Uses Android's EncryptedSharedPreferences (AES-256)
• No accounts: Just a free Groq API key from console.groq.com
• No telemetry: No data collection, no analytics
• Open source: All code available for review

Download

Get the latest APK from the Releases page.

Note: You'll need to allow "Install from unknown sources" on your Android device.

Setup

1. Install the APK

Download and install GroqAndroid-v1.5.apk from the releases page.

2. Get a Groq API key

1. Go to console.groq.com
2. Sign up for a free account
3. Create an API key

3. Configure the app

1. Open GroqAndroid
2. Paste your API key and tap Save
3. Follow the on-screen steps to enable the keyboard

4. Activate the keyboard

1. Enable: Settings → System → Languages & input → On-screen keyboard → Enable "GroqAndroid Voice"
2. Select: Open any text field, tap the keyboard icon in the navigation bar, and choose "GroqAndroid Voice"

Tip: In Gboard, long-press the spacebar to quickly switch to GroqAndroid Voice.

5. Set up the floating bubble (optional)

1. Enable the Floating Voice Input toggle in the GroqAndroid app
2. When prompted, enable the Accessibility Service in Android settings
3. Grant overlay permission when prompted
4. Grant notification permission to see bubble controls in the notification shade

Usage

Keyboard Mode

1. Switch to GroqAndroid Voice keyboard
2. Tap the microphone button (turns red)
3. Speak your text
4. Tap again to stop (turns orange while processing)
5. Transcribed text appears at cursor with a trailing space

Floating Bubble Mode

1. Enable the floating bubble in settings
2. A blue microphone icon appears on screen
3. Tap to start recording (turns red)
4. Tap again to stop (turns orange, then back to blue)
5. Text is inserted at the cursor in the currently focused text field
6. Drag the bubble to reposition it (snaps to screen edge)
7. Long-press to show the close button

Language Selection

Tap the LANG button on the keyboard to choose from 16 languages or auto-detect.

Keyboard Layout

            [status text / transcription result]
  [LANG]           [🎤 MIC button]           [⚙ Settings]
  [ ,  ] [ .  ] [  ?  ] [  !  ] [  ⌫ Backspace  ]
  [ ⌨  ] [       Spacebar        ] [ " " ] [  ↵  ]

Button	Tap	Long press
🎤 Mic	Start/stop recording	—
,	Insert comma	Insert semicolon
.	Insert period	Insert colon
?	Insert question mark	—
!	Insert exclamation mark	—
⌫	Delete one character	Continuous delete
Spacebar	Insert space	Select all text
" "	Wrap selection in quotes	—
↵	New line	—
LANG	Language picker	—
⌨	Switch keyboard	—
⚙	Open settings	—

Settings

Setting	Description	Default
API Key	Your Groq API key (encrypted storage)	—
Custom Dictionary	Words/names for better recognition	Empty
Word Replacements	Auto-correct misrecognized words	Empty
Floating Voice Input	Enable the floating bubble	Off
Auto-show in chats	Show/hide bubble with text field focus	Off
Sound Cues	Audio feedback on record start/stop	On
Whisper Model	V3 Turbo (fast) or V3 Full (accurate)	V3 Turbo

Architecture

app/src/main/java/com/groqandroid/
├── GroqIME.kt                    # Keyboard service (InputMethodService)
├── TranscriptionOverlayService.kt # Floating bubble (AccessibilityService)
├── GroqApiClient.kt               # Groq Whisper API client (OkHttp)
├── AudioRecorder.kt               # Microphone → WAV file (16kHz mono PCM)
├── SettingsActivity.kt            # Settings screen (launcher activity)
└── PermissionActivity.kt         # Runtime permission request

How it works

1. Recording: AudioRecorder captures audio at 16kHz, mono, 16-bit PCM and writes a WAV file
2. Transcription: GroqApiClient sends the WAV to the Groq Whisper API via multipart POST
3. Text insertion:
   • Keyboard: currentInputConnection.commitText() inserts text directly
   • Bubble: AccessibilityNodeInfo.ACTION_SET_TEXT sets the field content, with clipboard paste as fallback
4. Post-processing: Word replacements are applied via regex before insertion

Tech Stack

• Language: Kotlin
• Min SDK: 26 (Android 8.0)
• Target SDK: 35 (Android 15)
• API: Groq Whisper (whisper-large-v3-turbo / whisper-large-v3)
• HTTP: OkHttp with Kotlin coroutines
• Audio: AudioRecord (16kHz, mono, PCM 16-bit → WAV)
• Security: EncryptedSharedPreferences (AES-256-GCM)
• Build: Gradle with Kotlin DSL, AGP 8.7.x

Building from Source

Prerequisites

• Android Studio (Arctic Fox or later)
• JDK 17
• Android SDK 35

Build & Run

# Clone the repository
git clone https://github.com/brvale97/GroqAndroid.git
cd GroqAndroid

# Open in Android Studio and sync Gradle
# Then build:
./gradlew assembleDebug

# Install on connected device:
adb install -r app/build/outputs/apk/debug/app-debug.apk

Generate Signed Release APK

# Build release
./gradlew assembleRelease

# Sign with your keystore
apksigner sign --ks your-keystore.jks \
  --ks-key-alias your-alias \
  app/build/outputs/apk/release/app-release-unsigned.apk

Known Issues & Design Decisions

• Fullscreen mode disabled: onEvaluateFullscreenMode() returns false to prevent the keyboard from taking over the entire screen on some devices
• Keyboard switch uses picker: switchToNextInputMethod() crashes on some devices (especially Xiaomi/MIUI), so we use showInputMethodPicker() instead
• MIUI overlay workaround: Xiaomi/MIUI doesn't deliver touch events for TYPE_ACCESSIBILITY_OVERLAY, so the bubble uses TYPE_APPLICATION_OVERLAY with SYSTEM_ALERT_WINDOW permission
• Short recording protection: Recordings under ~1 second are skipped to prevent Whisper from hallucinating text based on the dictionary prompt
• Hint text detection: Signal and WhatsApp return placeholder text as node.text when the field is empty — we detect and filter this out

Troubleshooting

"Controlled by restricted setting" / "App was denied access"

This is the most common issue when installing GroqAndroid via APK (sideloading). Android blocks accessibility and input permissions for apps not installed from the Play Store.

To fix this:

1. Go to Settings → Apps → GroqAndroid Voice Input
2. Tap the three-dot menu (⋮) in the top-right corner
3. Select "Allow restricted settings" (or "Beperkte instellingen toestaan" in Dutch)
4. Confirm with your PIN, pattern, or fingerprint
5. Go back to Settings → Accessibility → Installed Apps and enable GroqAndroid Voice Input

Note: On some devices (Samsung, Xiaomi), you may need to go to Settings → Apps → GroqAndroid Voice Input → App info first, then look for the three-dot menu with "Allow restricted settings".

Samsung/One UI: The option is usually found by tapping the app name in the app list, then tapping the three dots (⋮) in the top right.

Bubble not responding to taps (Xiaomi/MIUI)

Xiaomi/MIUI devices require the "Display over other apps" (overlay) permission for touch events to work. The app requests this automatically, but you can also enable it manually:

1. Go to Settings → Apps → GroqAndroid Voice Input → Other permissions
2. Enable "Display over other apps"

No notification when bubble is closed

On Android 13+, you need to grant notification permission:

1. Go to Settings → Apps → GroqAndroid Voice Input → Notifications
2. Enable "Allow notifications"

Or toggle the floating bubble off and on again in the GroqAndroid app — it will prompt for the permission.

Groq API Limits

Limit	Free Tier	Developer Tier
Max file size	25 MB	100 MB
Min audio duration	0.01s	0.01s
Prompt (dictionary)	224 tokens max	224 tokens max
Supported formats	WAV, MP3, FLAC, M4A, OGG, WebM	Same
Rate limits (RPM/RPD)	Organization-specific	Higher
Pricing	Free	Turbo: $0.04/hr, Full: $0.111/hr

Note: Exact rate limits (requests per minute/day, audio seconds per hour/day) vary by account. Check your limits at console.groq.com/settings/limits.

Tip: A typical voice message (5-15 seconds, 16kHz mono WAV) is only ~150-500 KB — well within the 25 MB limit. The app enforces a 2-minute max recording duration (~3.7 MB).

Device Compatibility

Manufacturer	Android Version	Keyboard	Floating Bubble	Notes
Xiaomi (MIUI)	14+	OK	OK	Needs "Display over other apps" permission for bubble
Samsung (One UI)	12+	OK	OK	"Allow restricted settings" needed for sideloaded APK
Google Pixel	12+	OK	OK	Works out of the box
OnePlus (OxygenOS)	12+	OK	OK	—

Help us expand this table! If you've tested on a device not listed here, please open an issue with your device model, Android version, and what works/doesn't work.

FAQ

Q: Is GroqAndroid free? A: Yes! The app is open source and free. You need a Groq API key, which has a generous free tier.

Q: What's the difference between the keyboard and the floating bubble? A: The keyboard replaces your current keyboard entirely. The floating bubble works on top of any keyboard (like Gboard), so you can type normally and use voice input when needed.

Q: Why doesn't text insertion work in the Claude app? A: Some apps (like Claude) use WebView-based text fields that don't support Android's accessibility text insertion. The transcribed text is copied to your clipboard — just long-press and paste.

Q: Why does Whisper sometimes transcribe random text when I didn't say anything? A: Very short recordings (< 1 second) can cause Whisper to "hallucinate" text. The app now skips recordings that are too short.

Q: Can I use this without an internet connection? A: No, GroqAndroid requires an internet connection to send audio to the Groq Whisper API. The audio is processed in the cloud and the transcribed text is returned.

Q: Which languages are supported? A: 16 languages: Auto-detect, Dutch, English, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Japanese, Chinese, Korean, Arabic, Turkish, Polish, Russian, and Slovak.

Acknowledgments

• Groq — Ultra-fast AI inference platform powering the Whisper transcription
• OpenAI Whisper — The speech recognition model
• OpenWhispr — Inspiration for dictation cue sounds
• OkHttp — HTTP client for Android

License

This project is open source. See the LICENSE file for details.