{ "data": { "a": { "slug": "ibm-watson-stt", "name": "IBM Watson Speech to Text", "vendor": "IBM", "vendorUrl": "https://www.ibm.com/products/speech-to-text", "kind": "model", "category": "speech-to-text", "summary": "IBM Watson Speech to Text transcribes audio over synchronous and asynchronous HTTP and a WebSocket interface on IBM Cloud, with large speech models, next-generation models, custom language and acoustic models, speaker labels and language identification.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/ibm-watson-stt", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/ibm-watson-stt.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/ibm-watson-stt.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/ibm-watson-stt.json", "dns": "ibm-watson-stt.grade.anchorterminal.com", "transports": [ "http", "websocket" ], "packages": [ { "registry": "pypi", "name": "ibm-watson" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "ibm-watson" } ], "auth": "api-key", "authNotes": "An IBM Cloud IAM API key per service instance, exchanged for a bearer token or sent with Basic auth as `apikey:\u003ckey\u003e`. Service credentials carry IAM roles. The WebSocket interface takes the IAM token as an `access_token` query parameter.", "pricing": "freemium", "pricingNotes": "Lite plan free for 500 minutes a month, deleted after 30 days of inactivity. Plus plan $0.02 a minute up to 999,999 minutes a month and $0.01 above, with up to 100 concurrent requests. Premium by quote.", "priceSummary": "Freemium", "where": "local", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402, MPP or L402 in the docs or API reference (checked 2026-11-06). Billing runs through an IBM Cloud account.", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": 0, "popularity": { "githubStars": null, "npmWeekly": null, "pypiWeekly": null, "asOf": "2026-11-06" }, "docsUrl": "https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/speech-to-text", "capabilities": [ "speech.stt", "speech.streaming", "speech.batch", "speech.diarisation", "speech.languages" ], "tags": [ "hosted", "freemium", "closed-source", "python", "typescript", "enterprise", "streaming", "batch", "async-jobs", "webhooks" ], "lastRelease": "2026-06-29", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 54.5, "grade": "C", "agentReady": false, "rank": 904, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 1486, "categoryRank": 18, "methodology": "0.7", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 66, "maintenance": 33, "payments": 40, "reliability": 40, "schema": 55, "security": 68, "transparency": 80 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-11-06" }, "negative": 0, "verdict": "Watson STT covers sync, async and WebSocket transcription in ten locations, with custom models, $0.02 a minute on Plus and 500 free minutes. There is no machine-readable spec or readable status history, requests are logged for improvement unless opted out, the WebSocket token goes in the URL, and the last release note is from June 2026.", "bestFor": "Enterprises on IBM Cloud needing custom acoustic models, HIPAA on Premium and many locations.", "strengths": [ "Sync, async with callbacks and WebSocket streaming on one service", "500 free minutes a month on Lite and $0.02 a minute on Plus", "Custom language and acoustic models on paid plans", "Dated deprecation of previous-generation models with over a year of notice", "`DELETE /v1/user_data` removes data by customer ID" ], "weaknesses": [ "No public OpenAPI file or llms.txt", "The WebSocket interface takes the IAM token as a URL query parameter", "Requests are logged by default to improve the service unless the account or request opts out", "The status page is drawn by script and no SLA was read", "No release note since 29 June 2026" ], "agentNotes": [ "Send `X-Watson-Learning-Opt-Out: true` or opt out at account level before sending sensitive audio", "Use the async `/v1/recognitions` interface with a callback for files over 100 MB, up to 1 GB", "Pass a large speech or next-generation model name in `model`, since previous-generation models were removed", "Tag requests with `X-Watson-Metadata: customer_id=...` so the data can be deleted later", "Keep within 100 concurrent requests on Plus across HTTP and WebSocket" ], "metrics": { "kind": "remote", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 0, "avgRating": 0, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "C", "methodology": "0.7", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 54.5 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 66, "maintenance": 33, "payments": 40, "reliability": 40, "schema": 55, "security": 68, "transparency": 65 }, "provenanceScore": 94, "checked": { "categories": { "ergonomics": "2026-11-06", "maintenance": "2026-11-06", "payments": "2026-11-06", "reliability": "2026-11-06", "schema": "2026-11-06", "security": "2026-11-06", "transparency": "2026-11-06" }, "last": "2026-11-06", "oldest": "2026-11-06", "stale": false, "staleAfterDays": 90 } }, "connect": { "install": "pip install ibm-watson" }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/speech.stt", "tool": "https://letme.dev/ibm-watson-stt" }, "sameCompany": [ "granite-embedding-small-english-r2", "granite-guardian", "granite-switch", "granite-4-2-3b" ], "area": "voice", "unitPrices": [ { "item": "Plus plan, first 999,999 minutes a month", "unit": "audio-minute", "usd": 0.02 }, { "item": "Plus plan, from 1,000,000 minutes a month", "unit": "audio-minute", "usd": 0.01 } ], "provenance": { "legalEntity": "International Business Machines Corporation", "domain": "ibm.com", "domainRegistered": "1986-03-19", "domainNote": "The endpoints are on watson.cloud.ibm.com, under ibm.com.", "endpointOnVendorDomain": true, "terms": "https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/overview?topic=overview-terms", "privacy": "https://www.ibm.com/privacy", "statusPage": "https://cloud.ibm.com/status", "changelog": "https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/speech-to-text?topic=speech-to-text-release-notes", "securityTxt": "valid", "checked": "2026-11-06", "notes": [ "cloud.ibm.com/robots.txt disallows only /docs/search?q= and sets Content-Signal ai-train=yes, search=yes, ai-input=yes.", "www.ibm.com/.well-known/security.txt names IBM PSIRT, HackerOne and psirt@us.ibm.com and expires on 6 December 2026.", "cloud.ibm.com/status returns a page drawn by script, so its incident history wasn't read.", "The IBM Cloud terms page was found but its text wasn't read, so no clause is quoted.", "RDAP gives ibm.com a registration date of 19 March 1986." ], "score": 94 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/ibm-watson-stt.json", "live": { "slug": "ibm-watson-stt", "vendorStatus": { "page": "https://cloud.ibm.com/status", "indicator": "unknown", "summary": "no machine-readable status found", "checkedAt": "2026-11-07T04:47:55.897466786Z" }, "versions": [ { "registry": "npm", "name": "ibm-watson", "version": "12.2.0", "seenAt": "2026-11-06T23:34:06.712780272Z" }, { "registry": "pypi", "name": "ibm-watson", "version": "11.2.0", "released": "2026-01-26", "seenAt": "2026-11-06T23:34:06.544738844Z" } ], "npmWeekly": 12367, "pypiWeekly": 10209, "securityTxt": { "url": "https://ibm.com/.well-known/security.txt", "state": "valid", "expires": "2026-12-07T00:00:00+00:00", "checkedAt": "2026-11-07T16:00:08.596796331Z" }, "pages": [ { "url": "https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/speech-to-text?topic=speech-to-text-release-notes", "kind": "changelog", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-11-07T14:01:17.694727718Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "8dcf87213e78" }, { "url": "https://www.ibm.com/privacy", "kind": "privacy", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-11-07T14:30:01.132495816Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "cf480cd7bcca" }, { "url": "https://cloud.ibm.com/docs/overview?topic=overview-terms", "kind": "terms", "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-11-07T14:01:13.338724324Z", "changedAt": "0001-01-01T00:00:00Z", "fingerprint": "a0514cb0ed80" } ], "updatedAt": "2026-11-07T16:00:08.596796331Z" } }, "answer": "Smallest.ai Pulse STT scores 65 (B) on agent readiness against IBM Watson Speech to Text's 54.5 (C), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. IBM Watson Speech to Text leads on security \u0026 auth and transparency \u0026 trust.", "b": { "slug": "smallest-pulse-stt", "name": "Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "vendor": "Smallest AI", "vendorUrl": "https://smallest.ai", "kind": "model", "category": "speech-to-text", "summary": "Smallest AI's Pulse speech-to-text API transcribes pre-recorded files over HTTP and live audio over WebSocket, with three models (Pulse, Pulse 2.0 and Pulse Pro), diarisation, word timestamps, redaction and turn detection.", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/smallest-pulse-stt", "markdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/smallest-pulse-stt.md", "slimMarkdownUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/smallest-pulse-stt.min.md", "jsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/smallest-pulse-stt.json", "dns": "smallest-pulse-stt.grade.anchorterminal.com", "repo": "https://github.com/smallest-inc/smallest-python-sdk", "transports": [ "http", "websocket" ], "packages": [ { "registry": "pypi", "name": "smallestai" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "smallestai" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "@developer-smallestai/smallest-mcp-server" } ], "auth": "api-key", "authNotes": "Bearer `sk_` API key created in the dashboard after a browser signup, shared by every model and the Voice Agents API. Keys are shown once, revoked by deleting them and carry no scopes. Servers can mint `wat_` access tokens for browsers (30 to 900 seconds, inference routes only), which the STT socket takes as `?api_key=`.", "pricing": "usage", "pricingNotes": "Pay as you go from $0.003 a minute for Pulse batch, $0.004 for Pulse streaming and $0.005 for Pulse 2.0. Pulse Pro is listed at both $0.0035 and $0.004 a minute. $10 in trial credits. Enterprise pricing, SLA and zero data retention by quote.", "priceSummary": "Pay per use", "where": "local", "x402": { "level": "no", "evidence": "No x402, MPP or L402 in the docs, OpenAPI file or pricing page (checked 2026-11-06). Credits are bought with a card on file.", "endpoints": [] }, "toolCount": 0, "popularity": { "githubStars": null, "npmWeekly": null, "pypiWeekly": null, "asOf": "2026-11-06" }, "docsUrl": "https://docs.smallest.ai/models/speech-to-text/overview", "llmsTxt": "https://docs.smallest.ai/llms.txt", "openapi": "https://docs.smallest.ai/openapi/models-api.json", "capabilities": [ "speech.stt", "speech.streaming", "speech.batch", "speech.diarisation", "speech.languages" ], "tags": [ "hosted", "usage", "closed-source", "python", "typescript", "openapi", "llms-txt", "streaming", "batch", "webhooks", "mcp", "enterprise", "self-hosted" ], "lastRelease": "2026-11-02", "graded": true, "anchor": { "graded": true, "score": 65, "grade": "B", "agentReady": false, "rank": 441, "ranked": true, "rankOf": 1486, "categoryRank": 13, "methodology": "0.7", "run": "2026-10-01", "scores": { "ergonomics": 66, "maintenance": 73, "payments": 40, "reliability": 63, "schema": 92, "security": 52, "transparency": 71 }, "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "assessment": { "confidence": "medium", "date": "2026-11-06" }, "negative": 0, "verdict": "Pulse covers files and live audio on one endpoint, with OpenAPI and AsyncAPI files, a dated changelog and public per-minute prices from $0.003. The shared API's health checks failed in every region on five days in September, keys carry no scopes and can travel in a URL, and zero retention is Enterprise only.", "bestFor": "Low-cost transcription for voice agents and call analytics, with Indic coverage and turn detection.", "strengths": [ "OpenAPI 3.1 and AsyncAPI 2.6 files cover the batch route and the streaming socket, with llms.txt and Markdown copies of every page", "Public prices of $0.003 a minute for batch, $0.004 for streaming and $0.005 for Pulse 2.0, with $10 of trial credits", "Dated Pulse changelog with nine entries between 30 August and 2 November 2026", "Opt-in diarisation, word timestamps, PII and PCI redaction, keyword boosting and turn detection on the same endpoint", "Region-pinned hosts in Mumbai and Oregon for data residency" ], "weaknesses": [ "Health checks on the shared API failed in all three regions on 9, 10, 13, 14 and 15 September 2026, the longest about 64 minutes", "Keys grant full account access with no scopes, and the docs pass keys or tokens as URL query parameters on WebSockets", "Zero data retention is Enterprise only or a $1,000 a month add-on, and no retention period is published for other plans", "No published SLA below Enterprise, and the terms allow changes or discontinuation without notice", "Several changelog entries correct response fields the reference had documented wrongly" ], "agentNotes": [ "Pass `?model=` on every call, since a missing model returns 400; use `pulse-pro` for English files and `pulse` for other languages or streaming", "Send booleans such as `diarize` and `word_timestamps` as the lowercase strings \"true\" or \"false\"", "Retry 429 with backoff from 500 ms up to 30 s and honour Retry-After; keep within 25 batch requests a minute on the Standard plan", "Use the region-pinned host api.us.smallest.ai or api.india.smallest.ai when the audio must stay in one region", "Read speaker labels only from final events, because interim streaming events carry no `words[]`" ], "metrics": { "kind": "remote", "measured": false }, "reviewCount": 0, "avgRating": 0, "history": [ { "basis": "public evidence", "confidence": "medium", "grade": "B", "methodology": "0.7", "pending": [ "performance", "tasks" ], "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "score": 65 } ], "editorialScores": { "ergonomics": 66, "maintenance": 73, "payments": 40, "reliability": 63, "schema": 92, "security": 52, "transparency": 55 }, "provenanceScore": 87, "checked": { "categories": { "ergonomics": "2026-11-06", "maintenance": "2026-11-06", "payments": "2026-11-06", "reliability": "2026-11-06", "schema": "2026-11-06", "security": "2026-11-06", "transparency": "2026-11-06" }, "last": "2026-11-06", "oldest": "2026-11-06", "stale": false, "staleAfterDays": 90 } }, "connect": { "install": "pip install smallestai", "http": "curl -X POST \"https://api.smallest.ai/waves/v1/stt/?model=pulse\u0026language=en\" \\\n -H \"Authorization: Bearer $SMALLEST_API_KEY\" -H \"Content-Type: application/json\" \\\n -d '{\"url\": \"https://github.com/smallest-inc/cookbook/raw/main/speech-to-text/getting-started/samples/audio.wav\"}'", "claudeCode": "claude mcp add smallest -- npx -y @developer-smallestai/smallest-mcp-server" }, "letme": { "capability": "https://letme.dev/speech.stt", "tool": "https://letme.dev/smallest-pulse-stt" }, "sameCompany": [ "smallest-lightning-tts", "smallest-voice-clone" ], "area": "voice", "unitPrices": [ { "item": "Pulse pre-recorded", "unit": "audio-minute", "usd": 0.003, "note": "pay as you go" }, { "item": "Pulse streaming", "unit": "audio-minute", "usd": 0.004, "note": "pay as you go" }, { "item": "Pulse Pro pre-recorded", "unit": "audio-minute", "usd": 0.0035, "note": "the pricing page also shows $0.004" }, { "item": "Pulse 2.0 streaming", "unit": "audio-minute", "usd": 0.005, "note": "Standard plan, per the Pulse changelog" } ], "provenance": { "legalEntity": "Smallest, Inc.", "domain": "smallest.ai", "domainRegistered": "2023-09-02", "endpointOnVendorDomain": true, "terms": "https://smallest.ai/terms-of-service", "privacy": "https://smallest.ai/privacy-policy", "statusPage": "https://status.smallest.ai/", "changelog": "https://docs.smallest.ai/changelog/models", "securityTxt": "valid", "checked": "2026-11-06", "notes": [ "The terms of service (effective 21 October 2026) name Smallest Inc., 311 California Street, Suite 320, San Francisco, under California law. The privacy policy (effective 18 September 2026) names Smallest, Inc. with a registered office in Lewes, Delaware.", "The terms forbid accessing or searching the services with spiders, robots, crawlers or similar data mining tools except through means Smallest makes available. Only public pages were read, with no account.", "smallest.ai/robots.txt allows all crawlers including ClaudeBot, with Content-Signal ai-train=yes, search=yes, ai-input=yes. docs.smallest.ai/robots.txt allows all paths except /api/fern-docs/.", "/.well-known/security.txt names security@smallest.ai and expires 31 December 2026. /security.txt returns 404.", "RDAP gives smallest.ai a registration date of 2 September 2023.", "Every docs page served as Markdown opens with a block addressed to AI assistants that says which models to prefer. It was read as data, not followed.", "firstReleased is left empty. No dated launch of the Models API was found on a page our reader may fetch." ], "score": 87 }, "pageJsonUrl": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/smallest-pulse-stt.json", "live": { "slug": "smallest-pulse-stt", "vendorStatus": { "page": "https://status.smallest.ai", "indicator": "unknown", "summary": "no machine-readable status found", "checkedAt": "2026-11-07T04:48:45.825598924Z" }, "versions": [ { "registry": "github", "name": "smallest-inc/smallest-python-sdk", "version": "v2.1.0", "released": "2025-03-04", "seenAt": "2026-11-07T00:06:40.503973794Z" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "@developer-smallestai/smallest-mcp-server", "version": "0.11.2", "seenAt": "2026-11-07T00:06:37.84247373Z" }, { "registry": "npm", "name": "smallestai", "version": "1.0.1", "seenAt": "2026-11-07T00:06:37.805702611Z" }, { "registry": "pypi", "name": "smallestai", "version": "5.14.0", "released": "2026-10-07", "seenAt": "2026-11-07T00:06:37.684406795Z" } ], "githubStars": 42, "npmWeekly": 149, "pypiWeekly": 850, "securityTxt": { "url": "https://smallest.ai/.well-known/security.txt", "state": "valid", "expires": "2026-12-31T23:59:59.000Z", "checkedAt": "2026-11-07T16:01:21.76871346Z" }, "llmsTxt": { "url": "https://docs.smallest.ai/llms.txt", "ok": true, "status": 200, "checkedAt": "2026-11-07T15:33:58.699076043Z" }, "updatedAt": "2026-11-07T16:01:21.76871346Z" } }, "edges": [ { "by": 40, "category": "maintenance", "leads": "smallest-pulse-stt", "name": "Maintenance \u0026 community", "reasons": { "a": "Read as a model. The newest release note is 29 June 2026 (`parameter_set` for large speech models), 130 days ago (10). No dated entries in the 90 days from 8 August (0). Release notes, IBM support and a public docs repository last changed 30 June 2026 (8 of 15). Official SDKs, `ibm-watson` 11.2.0 on PyPI (26 January 2026) and 12.2.0 on npm (January 2026) (10 of 15). CI not read (5 of 10). Total 33.", "b": "Read as a model. The newest Pulse changelog entry is dated 2 November 2026 (updated Indic benchmarks), and Pulse 2.0 launched within the period (30). Dated Pulse entries on 30 August, 18, 29 and 30 September, 1, 12, 13 and 21 October and 2 November (20). Public changelog, email support and a Discord server, with no evidence read of how they answer (10 of 15). The Python SDK `smallestai` 5.14.0 dates from 7 October with 12 releases since 9 August, but the npm Node SDK has not been published since May 2025 (8 of 15). The Python SDK repository runs CI and release workflows, but has no licence file (5 of 10). Total 73." }, "scores": { "a": 33, "b": 73 } }, { "by": 37, "category": "schema", "leads": "smallest-pulse-stt", "name": "Schema \u0026 documentation", "reasons": { "a": "No public OpenAPI or other machine-readable definition was found (0). No llms.txt (0). The reference says which parameters each model family supports and the docs cover each feature (15 of 20). Typed parameters with defaults, ranges and enums (13 of 15). curl and SDK examples on every method, and errors with `error`, `code`, `code_description` and `warnings`, with invalid arguments reported as warnings (12 of 15). Versioned `/v1` paths and dated release notes back to 2015 (15). Total 55.", "b": "OpenAPI 3.1 for the HTTP routes and AsyncAPI 2.6 for the STT socket, with query parameters and event schemas (25). llms.txt and a Markdown copy of every page (10). Model cards and a compare page say which model suits which audio, and fields say where they're ignored (Pulse Pro ignores redaction), but several changelog entries correct response fields the reference had wrong, such as the diarisation shape and a `redacted_entities` array that doesn't exist (15 of 20). Typed query parameters with enums, defaults and required marks, though booleans are string enums that must be lowercase (13 of 15). Examples in curl, Python and JavaScript, and the reference lists 400, 401, 403, 413, 422 and 429 bodies with known `code` values (14 of 15). Versioned `/v1` paths, a deprecations page and a dated Pulse changelog (15). Total 92." }, "scores": { "a": 55, "b": 92 } }, { "by": 23, "category": "reliability", "leads": "smallest-pulse-stt", "name": "Reliability", "reasons": { "a": "IBM Cloud has a status page at cloud.ibm.com/status, but it is drawn by script and showed no components or history to our reader, read as gemini-live's script-shell page was (10 of 20, and 5 for no readable history). Plus allows up to 100 concurrent transcription requests across WebSocket and HTTP (15). No 429 or backoff guidance was found in the API reference or the docs repository (0). No SLA was read for the service (0, unchecked). Next-generation and large speech models are GA, language by language (10). 10 + 5 + 15 + 0 + 0 + 10 = 40.", "b": "BetterStack status page at status.smallest.ai with components for the Global, India and USA APIs (one health check covers the Agents and Models APIs), docs, the app and Electron, and per-component history (20). In the 90 days from 8 August the health checks on the shared API failed in all three regions on 9, 10, 13, 14 and 15 September (about 8, 21, 33, 17 and 64 minutes of flapping), in the Global and India regions on 11 and 17 September (12 minutes each), and in the USA region alone on 1, 3, 5, 12, 21 and 30 September (6 to 62 minutes) and 6 October (12 minutes). Outages in every region at once are read as wide errors, so several majors (0). Standard plan limits published per model, 100 concurrent streaming sessions and 25 batch requests a minute, and the pricing page also says 100 concurrent STT streams (15). 429 is documented with exponential backoff from 500 ms to 30 s and Retry-After when present, and batch calls are synchronous with optional webhooks (15). An infrastructure SLA of 99.99 per cent is named for Enterprise only, with no terms published, and the terms disclaim any availability commitment (5 of 10). Pulse, Pulse 2.0 and Pulse Pro carry no preview label, but eleven language codes are marked Beta (8 of 10). 20 + 0 + 15 + 15 + 5 + 8 = 63." }, "scores": { "a": 40, "b": 63 } }, { "by": 16, "category": "security", "leads": "ibm-watson-stt", "name": "Security \u0026 auth", "reasons": { "a": "Model reading of the checklist, with training and retention in place of the least-privilege and injection lines. IAM API keys per instance with Reader, Writer and Manager roles and short-lived bearer tokens (30). The WebSocket interface takes the token as an `access_token` query parameter, so 10 off (20 of 30). Request and response data are logged by default to improve the service, and any account can opt out per account or per request (10 of 20). Async results expire after a week by default (`results_ttl` shortens it), a delete method exists, and `DELETE /v1/user_data` removes data by customer ID (10 of 15). Activity Tracker events record changes to the service's state (10 of 15). Valid security.txt to 6 December 2026, PSIRT and HackerOne, HIPAA readiness on Premium. Certifications weren't read (18 of 20). Total 68.", "b": "Model reading of the checklist, with training and retention in place of the least-privilege and injection lines. Plain `sk_` keys per organisation, shown once, revoked at once and deletable, with one key per environment advised. The docs say a key grants full account access, and no scope is offered. Short-lived access tokens (`wat_`, 30 to 900 seconds) cover only inference routes and can't mint tokens (22 of 30). The error reference documents the key as a `?token=` query parameter for browser WebSockets, and the token guide passes access tokens as `?api_key=` on the STT socket, so 10 off (12 of 30). The terms (21 October 2026) say Smallest won't use user content or input to train or improve its services. The privacy policy (18 September 2026) lists improving the services with machine learning as a use of usage data and doesn't address uploaded audio or text either way (15 of 20). Zero data retention and the `x-expire-content` header are Enterprise only, or a $1,000 a month HIPAA add-on on pay as you go. Other plans keep content readable in logs and the dashboard, with no retention period published (5 of 15). Usage is tracked per key, request rows sit in a dashboard log viewer, and every response carries `x-request-id`. No audit log of key actions was found (10 of 15). security.txt is valid to 31 December 2026 and the site footer claims SOC 2, GDPR and HIPAA compliance, while the pricing page lists SOC 2 compliance only on Enterprise. No bug bounty, disclosure policy or public advisories found (10 of 20). Total 52." }, "scores": { "a": 68, "b": 52 } }, { "by": 9, "category": "transparency", "leads": "ibm-watson-stt", "name": "Transparency \u0026 trust", "reasons": { "a": "Closed service under the IBM Cloud terms (15). The data security page states default logging for improvement with an opt-out, async retention, GDPR deletion by customer ID and plan-level separation, and they agree with each other. The DPA wasn't read (20 of 30). Previous-generation models carried a dated deprecation of 15 March 2022 and removal on 31 July 2023, and release notes say changes are compatible unless noted (18 of 20). Ten locations are named, with sub-processors not read (12 of 20). Total 65.", "b": "Closed service with clear terms naming Smallest Inc. under California law (15). The ZDR page is specific about what each mode keeps, but the terms' no-training clause and the privacy policy's machine-learning use of usage data sit side by side, the privacy policy gives no retention periods, and the policy doesn't mention the DPA a footer link points to (15 of 30). A deprecations page gives statuses, dates and migration targets, deprecated routes return a `Deprecation: true` header, and the 30 September changelog removed 14 European codes from the batch enum with a migration to `multi-eu`. The terms still let Smallest change or discontinue services at any time without notice (15 of 20). Two regions named (Mumbai and Oregon) with region-pinned hosts, and only Google Analytics and Fullstory named among third parties, with no sub-processor list found (10 of 20). Total 55." }, "scores": { "a": 80, "b": 71 } } ], "facts": [ { "a": "Model API", "b": "Model API", "name": "Kind" }, { "a": "IBM", "b": "Smallest AI", "name": "Vendor" }, { "a": "no (local only)", "b": "no (local only)", "name": "Hosted endpoint" }, { "a": "HTTP, websocket", "b": "HTTP, websocket", "name": "Transports" }, { "a": "API key", "b": "API key", "name": "Auth" }, { "a": "Freemium", "b": "Pay per use", "name": "Pricing" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "x402" }, { "a": "0", "b": "0", "name": "Tools exposed" }, { "a": "no", "b": "no", "name": "Read-only variant documented" }, { "a": "no", "b": "yes", "name": "llms.txt" }, { "a": "2026-06-29", "b": "2026-11-02", "name": "Last release" }, { "a": "no date given", "b": "no date given", "name": "Terms last updated" }, { "a": "2026-08-25", "b": "no date given", "name": "Privacy policy last updated" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "not found in the text", "name": "Customer content may train models" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "not found in the text", "name": "Terms restrict automated access" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "not found in the text", "name": "Terms restrict benchmarking" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "yes", "name": "Terms or service can change without notice" }, { "a": "not found in the text", "b": "yes", "name": "Arbitration or class-action waiver" } ], "faq": [ { "answer": "Smallest.ai Pulse STT scores 65 (B) on agent readiness against IBM Watson Speech to Text's 54.5 (C), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. IBM Watson Speech to Text leads on security \u0026 auth and transparency \u0026 trust.", "question": "Which is better for AI agents, IBM Watson Speech to Text or Smallest.ai Pulse STT?" }, { "answer": "Both need an API key.", "question": "Do IBM Watson Speech to Text and Smallest.ai Pulse STT need an API key?" }, { "answer": "No hosted endpoint is listed for IBM Watson Speech to Text. No hosted endpoint is listed for Smallest.ai Pulse STT.", "question": "Can an agent call IBM Watson Speech to Text and Smallest.ai Pulse STT without installing anything?" } ], "goodFor": [ { "aheadOn": [ "Security \u0026 auth, 68 against 52", "Transparency \u0026 trust, 80 against 71" ], "also": null, "goodFor": "Enterprises on IBM Cloud needing custom acoustic models, HIPAA on Premium and many locations.", "slug": "ibm-watson-stt", "watchFor": "No public OpenAPI file or llms.txt" }, { "aheadOn": [ "Reliability, 63 against 40", "Schema \u0026 documentation, 92 against 55", "Maintenance \u0026 community, 73 against 33" ], "also": null, "goodFor": "Low-cost transcription for voice agents and call analytics, with Indic coverage and turn detection.", "slug": "smallest-pulse-stt", "watchFor": "Health checks on the shared API failed in all three regions on 9, 10, 13, 14 and 15 September 2026, the longest about 64 minutes" } ], "history": null, "job": { "capability": "speech.stt", "name": "Speech-to-text" }, "others": [ { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amazon-transcribe-vs-ibm-watson-stt.json", "title": "Amazon Transcribe vs IBM Watson Speech to Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amazon-transcribe-vs-ibm-watson-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amazon-transcribe-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "Amazon Transcribe vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amazon-transcribe-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt.json", "title": "AssemblyAI Speech-to-Text (Universal) vs IBM Watson Speech to Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "AssemblyAI Speech-to-Text (Universal) vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/azure-speech-to-text-vs-ibm-watson-stt.json", "title": "Azure AI Speech speech-to-text vs IBM Watson Speech to Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/azure-speech-to-text-vs-ibm-watson-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/azure-speech-to-text-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "Azure AI Speech speech-to-text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/azure-speech-to-text-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cartesia-ink-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt.json", "title": "Cartesia Ink vs IBM Watson Speech to Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cartesia-ink-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cartesia-ink-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "Cartesia Ink vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cartesia-ink-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deepgram-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt.json", "title": "Deepgram Speech-to-Text (Nova-3, Flux) vs IBM Watson Speech to Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deepgram-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deepgram-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "Deepgram Speech-to-Text (Nova-3, Flux) vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deepgram-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/elevenlabs-scribe-vs-ibm-watson-stt.json", "title": "ElevenLabs Scribe Speech to Text API vs IBM Watson Speech to Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/elevenlabs-scribe-vs-ibm-watson-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/elevenlabs-scribe-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "ElevenLabs Scribe Speech to Text API vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/elevenlabs-scribe-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/giggy-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt.json", "title": "Giggy Speech to Text vs IBM Watson Speech to Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/giggy-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/giggy-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "Giggy Speech to Text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/giggy-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gladia-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt.json", "title": "Gladia Speech-to-Text API + MCP vs IBM Watson Speech to Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gladia-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gladia-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "Gladia Speech-to-Text API + MCP vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gladia-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-speech-to-text-vs-ibm-watson-stt.json", "title": "Google Cloud Speech-to-Text vs IBM Watson Speech to Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-speech-to-text-vs-ibm-watson-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-speech-to-text-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "Google Cloud Speech-to-Text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-speech-to-text-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/groq-speech-to-text-vs-ibm-watson-stt.json", "title": "Groq Speech-to-Text vs IBM Watson Speech to Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/groq-speech-to-text-vs-ibm-watson-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/groq-speech-to-text-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "Groq Speech-to-Text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/groq-speech-to-text-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-inworld-stt.json", "title": "IBM Watson Speech to Text vs Inworld STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-inworld-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-minimax-stt.json", "title": "IBM Watson Speech to Text vs MiniMax Speech-to-Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-minimax-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-mistral-voxtral-transcribe.json", "title": "IBM Watson Speech to Text vs Mistral Voxtral Transcribe", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-mistral-voxtral-transcribe" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-openai-speech-to-text.json", "title": "IBM Watson Speech to Text vs OpenAI Speech to Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-openai-speech-to-text" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-rev-ai-stt.json", "title": "IBM Watson Speech to Text vs Rev AI Speech-to-Text API", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-rev-ai-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-soniox-stt.json", "title": "IBM Watson Speech to Text vs Soniox Speech-to-Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-soniox-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-speechmatics-stt.json", "title": "IBM Watson Speech to Text vs Speechmatics Speech-to-Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-speechmatics-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/inworld-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "Inworld STT vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/inworld-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/minimax-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "MiniMax Speech-to-Text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/minimax-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/mistral-voxtral-transcribe-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "Mistral Voxtral Transcribe vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/mistral-voxtral-transcribe-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-speech-to-text-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "OpenAI Speech to Text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-speech-to-text-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/rev-ai-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "title": "Rev AI Speech-to-Text API vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/rev-ai-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/smallest-pulse-stt-vs-soniox-stt.json", "title": "Smallest.ai Pulse STT vs Soniox Speech-to-Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/smallest-pulse-stt-vs-soniox-stt" }, { "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/smallest-pulse-stt-vs-speechmatics-stt.json", "title": "Smallest.ai Pulse STT vs Speechmatics Speech-to-Text", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/smallest-pulse-stt-vs-speechmatics-stt" } ], "panel": null, "scores": [ { "by": 23, "edge": "smallest-pulse-stt", "ibm-watson-stt": 40, "key": "reliability", "name": "Reliability", "smallest-pulse-stt": 63, "weight": 16 }, { "key": "performance", "name": "Performance", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "by": 37, "edge": "smallest-pulse-stt", "ibm-watson-stt": 55, "key": "schema", "name": "Schema \u0026 documentation", "smallest-pulse-stt": 92, "weight": 13 }, { "by": 0, "edge": "", "ibm-watson-stt": 66, "key": "ergonomics", "name": "Agent ergonomics", "smallest-pulse-stt": 66, "weight": 13 }, { "by": 16, "edge": "ibm-watson-stt", "ibm-watson-stt": 68, "key": "security", "name": "Security \u0026 auth", "smallest-pulse-stt": 52, "weight": 14 }, { "by": 0, "edge": "", "ibm-watson-stt": 40, "key": "payments", "name": "Payments \u0026 pricing", "smallest-pulse-stt": 40, "weight": 10 }, { "key": "tasks", "name": "Task success", "pending": true, "weight": 10 }, { "by": 40, "edge": "smallest-pulse-stt", "ibm-watson-stt": 33, "key": "maintenance", "name": "Maintenance \u0026 community", "smallest-pulse-stt": 73, "weight": 7 }, { "by": 9, "edge": "ibm-watson-stt", "ibm-watson-stt": 80, "key": "transparency", "name": "Transparency \u0026 trust", "smallest-pulse-stt": 71, "weight": 7 } ], "summary": "Smallest.ai Pulse STT scores 65 (B) on agent readiness against IBM Watson Speech to Text's 54.5 (C), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. IBM Watson Speech to Text leads on security \u0026 auth and transparency \u0026 trust. Both do speech-to-text.", "tasks": [ { "a": "$0.60 to $1.20", "b": "$0.18 to $0.30", "cheaper": "smallest-pulse-stt", "task": "Transcribe a one-hour meeting", "what": "60 minutes of recorded audio" } ], "tutorials": [], "verdicts": { "ibm-watson-stt": "Watson STT covers sync, async and WebSocket transcription in ten locations, with custom models, $0.02 a minute on Plus and 500 free minutes. There is no machine-readable spec or readable status history, requests are logged for improvement unless opted out, the WebSocket token goes in the URL, and the last release note is from June 2026.", "smallest-pulse-stt": "Pulse covers files and live audio on one endpoint, with OpenAPI and AsyncAPI files, a dated changelog and public per-minute prices from $0.003. The shared API's health checks failed in every region on five days in September, keys carry no scopes and can travel in a URL, and zero retention is Enterprise only." } }, "kind": "anchor.page", "links": { "api": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/index.json", "html": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt", "json": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json", "llms": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/llms.txt", "markdown": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md", "mcp": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp", "slim": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.min.md" }, "markdown": "Smallest.ai Pulse STT scores 65 (B) on agent readiness against IBM Watson Speech to Text's 54.5 (C), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. IBM Watson Speech to Text leads on security \u0026 auth and transparency \u0026 trust. Both do speech-to-text.\n\n- IBM Watson Speech to Text: grade C, 54.5/100, rank #904 of 1486. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/ibm-watson-stt.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/ibm-watson-stt.json\n- Smallest.ai Pulse STT: grade B, 65/100, rank #441 of 1486. Markdown https://www.anchorterminal.com/tools/smallest-pulse-stt.md · JSON https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/smallest-pulse-stt.json\n- Best speech-to-text APIs for AI agents: https://www.anchorterminal.com/best/speech-to-text/index.md\n- All 320 stt comparisons: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/speech-to-text/index.md\n\n## Which one, for what\n\n### IBM Watson Speech to Text (C)\n\nGood for: Enterprises on IBM Cloud needing custom acoustic models, HIPAA on Premium and many locations.\n\nAhead on:\n- Security \u0026 auth, 68 against 52\n- Transparency \u0026 trust, 80 against 71\n\nWatch for: No public OpenAPI file or llms.txt\n\n### Smallest.ai Pulse STT (B)\n\nGood for: Low-cost transcription for voice agents and call analytics, with Indic coverage and turn detection.\n\nAhead on:\n- Reliability, 63 against 40\n- Schema \u0026 documentation, 92 against 55\n- Maintenance \u0026 community, 73 against 33\n\nWatch for: Health checks on the shared API failed in all three regions on 9, 10, 13, 14 and 15 September 2026, the longest about 64 minutes\n\n\n## Why the edge\n\n### Maintenance \u0026 community: Smallest.ai Pulse STT +40\n\n- IBM Watson Speech to Text (33): Read as a model. The newest release note is 29 June 2026 (`parameter_set` for large speech models), 130 days ago (10). No dated entries in the 90 days from 8 August (0). Release notes, IBM support and a public docs repository last changed 30 June 2026 (8 of 15). Official SDKs, `ibm-watson` 11.2.0 on PyPI (26 January 2026) and 12.2.0 on npm (January 2026) (10 of 15). CI not read (5 of 10). Total 33.\n- Smallest.ai Pulse STT (73): Read as a model. The newest Pulse changelog entry is dated 2 November 2026 (updated Indic benchmarks), and Pulse 2.0 launched within the period (30). Dated Pulse entries on 30 August, 18, 29 and 30 September, 1, 12, 13 and 21 October and 2 November (20). Public changelog, email support and a Discord server, with no evidence read of how they answer (10 of 15). The Python SDK `smallestai` 5.14.0 dates from 7 October with 12 releases since 9 August, but the npm Node SDK has not been published since May 2025 (8 of 15). The Python SDK repository runs CI and release workflows, but has no licence file (5 of 10). Total 73.\n\n### Schema \u0026 documentation: Smallest.ai Pulse STT +37\n\n- IBM Watson Speech to Text (55): No public OpenAPI or other machine-readable definition was found (0). No llms.txt (0). The reference says which parameters each model family supports and the docs cover each feature (15 of 20). Typed parameters with defaults, ranges and enums (13 of 15). curl and SDK examples on every method, and errors with `error`, `code`, `code_description` and `warnings`, with invalid arguments reported as warnings (12 of 15). Versioned `/v1` paths and dated release notes back to 2015 (15). Total 55.\n- Smallest.ai Pulse STT (92): OpenAPI 3.1 for the HTTP routes and AsyncAPI 2.6 for the STT socket, with query parameters and event schemas (25). llms.txt and a Markdown copy of every page (10). Model cards and a compare page say which model suits which audio, and fields say where they're ignored (Pulse Pro ignores redaction), but several changelog entries correct response fields the reference had wrong, such as the diarisation shape and a `redacted_entities` array that doesn't exist (15 of 20). Typed query parameters with enums, defaults and required marks, though booleans are string enums that must be lowercase (13 of 15). Examples in curl, Python and JavaScript, and the reference lists 400, 401, 403, 413, 422 and 429 bodies with known `code` values (14 of 15). Versioned `/v1` paths, a deprecations page and a dated Pulse changelog (15). Total 92.\n\n### Reliability: Smallest.ai Pulse STT +23\n\n- IBM Watson Speech to Text (40): IBM Cloud has a status page at cloud.ibm.com/status, but it is drawn by script and showed no components or history to our reader, read as gemini-live's script-shell page was (10 of 20, and 5 for no readable history). Plus allows up to 100 concurrent transcription requests across WebSocket and HTTP (15). No 429 or backoff guidance was found in the API reference or the docs repository (0). No SLA was read for the service (0, unchecked). Next-generation and large speech models are GA, language by language (10). 10 + 5 + 15 + 0 + 0 + 10 = 40.\n- Smallest.ai Pulse STT (63): BetterStack status page at status.smallest.ai with components for the Global, India and USA APIs (one health check covers the Agents and Models APIs), docs, the app and Electron, and per-component history (20). In the 90 days from 8 August the health checks on the shared API failed in all three regions on 9, 10, 13, 14 and 15 September (about 8, 21, 33, 17 and 64 minutes of flapping), in the Global and India regions on 11 and 17 September (12 minutes each), and in the USA region alone on 1, 3, 5, 12, 21 and 30 September (6 to 62 minutes) and 6 October (12 minutes). Outages in every region at once are read as wide errors, so several majors (0). Standard plan limits published per model, 100 concurrent streaming sessions and 25 batch requests a minute, and the pricing page also says 100 concurrent STT streams (15). 429 is documented with exponential backoff from 500 ms to 30 s and Retry-After when present, and batch calls are synchronous with optional webhooks (15). An infrastructure SLA of 99.99 per cent is named for Enterprise only, with no terms published, and the terms disclaim any availability commitment (5 of 10). Pulse, Pulse 2.0 and Pulse Pro carry no preview label, but eleven language codes are marked Beta (8 of 10). 20 + 0 + 15 + 15 + 5 + 8 = 63.\n\n### Security \u0026 auth: IBM Watson Speech to Text +16\n\n- IBM Watson Speech to Text (68): Model reading of the checklist, with training and retention in place of the least-privilege and injection lines. IAM API keys per instance with Reader, Writer and Manager roles and short-lived bearer tokens (30). The WebSocket interface takes the token as an `access_token` query parameter, so 10 off (20 of 30). Request and response data are logged by default to improve the service, and any account can opt out per account or per request (10 of 20). Async results expire after a week by default (`results_ttl` shortens it), a delete method exists, and `DELETE /v1/user_data` removes data by customer ID (10 of 15). Activity Tracker events record changes to the service's state (10 of 15). Valid security.txt to 6 December 2026, PSIRT and HackerOne, HIPAA readiness on Premium. Certifications weren't read (18 of 20). Total 68.\n- Smallest.ai Pulse STT (52): Model reading of the checklist, with training and retention in place of the least-privilege and injection lines. Plain `sk_` keys per organisation, shown once, revoked at once and deletable, with one key per environment advised. The docs say a key grants full account access, and no scope is offered. Short-lived access tokens (`wat_`, 30 to 900 seconds) cover only inference routes and can't mint tokens (22 of 30). The error reference documents the key as a `?token=` query parameter for browser WebSockets, and the token guide passes access tokens as `?api_key=` on the STT socket, so 10 off (12 of 30). The terms (21 October 2026) say Smallest won't use user content or input to train or improve its services. The privacy policy (18 September 2026) lists improving the services with machine learning as a use of usage data and doesn't address uploaded audio or text either way (15 of 20). Zero data retention and the `x-expire-content` header are Enterprise only, or a $1,000 a month HIPAA add-on on pay as you go. Other plans keep content readable in logs and the dashboard, with no retention period published (5 of 15). Usage is tracked per key, request rows sit in a dashboard log viewer, and every response carries `x-request-id`. No audit log of key actions was found (10 of 15). security.txt is valid to 31 December 2026 and the site footer claims SOC 2, GDPR and HIPAA compliance, while the pricing page lists SOC 2 compliance only on Enterprise. No bug bounty, disclosure policy or public advisories found (10 of 20). Total 52.\n\n### Transparency \u0026 trust: IBM Watson Speech to Text +9\n\n- IBM Watson Speech to Text (80): Closed service under the IBM Cloud terms (15). The data security page states default logging for improvement with an opt-out, async retention, GDPR deletion by customer ID and plan-level separation, and they agree with each other. The DPA wasn't read (20 of 30). Previous-generation models carried a dated deprecation of 15 March 2022 and removal on 31 July 2023, and release notes say changes are compatible unless noted (18 of 20). Ten locations are named, with sub-processors not read (12 of 20). Total 65.\n- Smallest.ai Pulse STT (71): Closed service with clear terms naming Smallest Inc. under California law (15). The ZDR page is specific about what each mode keeps, but the terms' no-training clause and the privacy policy's machine-learning use of usage data sit side by side, the privacy policy gives no retention periods, and the policy doesn't mention the DPA a footer link points to (15 of 30). A deprecations page gives statuses, dates and migration targets, deprecated routes return a `Deprecation: true` header, and the 30 September changelog removed 14 European codes from the batch enum with a migration to `multi-eu`. The terms still let Smallest change or discontinue services at any time without notice (15 of 20). Two regions named (Mumbai and Oregon) with region-pinned hosts, and only Google Analytics and Fullstory named among third parties, with no sub-processor list found (10 of 20). Total 55.\n\n## Score by category\n\n| Category | Weight | IBM Watson Speech to Text | Smallest.ai Pulse STT | Edge |\n| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |\n| Reliability | 16% (20 this run) | 40 | 63 | Smallest.ai Pulse STT +23 |\n| Performance | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Schema \u0026 documentation | 13% (16.2 this run) | 55 | 92 | Smallest.ai Pulse STT +37 |\n| Agent ergonomics | 13% (16.2 this run) | 66 | 66 | even |\n| Security \u0026 auth | 14% (17.5 this run) | 68 | 52 | IBM Watson Speech to Text +16 |\n| Payments \u0026 pricing | 10% (12.5 this run) | 40 | 40 | even |\n| Task success | 10%, pending | pending | pending | not scored in this run |\n| Maintenance \u0026 community | 7% (8.8 this run) | 33 | 73 | Smallest.ai Pulse STT +40 |\n| Transparency \u0026 trust | 7% (8.8 this run) | 80 | 71 | IBM Watson Speech to Text +9 |\n| Negative events | ≤15 | 0 | 0 | |\n| **Total** | | **54.5 · C** | **65 · B** | |\n\n## Facts side by side\n\n| Fact | IBM Watson Speech to Text | Smallest.ai Pulse STT |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| Kind | Model API | Model API |\n| Vendor | IBM | Smallest AI |\n| Hosted endpoint | no (local only) | no (local only) |\n| Transports | HTTP, websocket | HTTP, websocket |\n| Auth | API key | API key |\n| Pricing | Freemium | Pay per use |\n| x402 | no | no |\n| Tools exposed | 0 | 0 |\n| Read-only variant documented | no | no |\n| llms.txt | no | yes |\n| Last release | 2026-06-29 | 2026-11-02 |\n| Terms last updated | no date given | no date given |\n| Privacy policy last updated | 2026-08-25 | no date given |\n| Customer content may train models | not found in the text | not found in the text |\n| Terms restrict automated access | not found in the text | not found in the text |\n| Terms restrict benchmarking | not found in the text | not found in the text |\n| Terms or service can change without notice | not found in the text | yes |\n| Arbitration or class-action waiver | not found in the text | yes |\n\n## What the same task costs\n\n| Task | IBM Watson Speech to Text | Smallest.ai Pulse STT |\n| --- | --- | --- |\n| Transcribe a one-hour meeting | $0.60 to $1.20 | $0.18 to $0.30 |\n\n## Verdicts\n\n**IBM Watson Speech to Text.** Watson STT covers sync, async and WebSocket transcription in ten locations, with custom models, $0.02 a minute on Plus and 500 free minutes. There is no machine-readable spec or readable status history, requests are logged for improvement unless opted out, the WebSocket token goes in the URL, and the last release note is from June 2026.\n\n**Smallest.ai Pulse STT.** Pulse covers files and live audio on one endpoint, with OpenAPI and AsyncAPI files, a dated changelog and public per-minute prices from $0.003. The shared API's health checks failed in every region on five days in September, keys carry no scopes and can travel in a URL, and zero retention is Enterprise only.\n\n## Before you call either\n\n### IBM Watson Speech to Text\n\n1. Send `X-Watson-Learning-Opt-Out: true` or opt out at account level before sending sensitive audio\n2. Use the async `/v1/recognitions` interface with a callback for files over 100 MB, up to 1 GB\n3. Pass a large speech or next-generation model name in `model`, since previous-generation models were removed\n4. Tag requests with `X-Watson-Metadata: customer_id=...` so the data can be deleted later\n5. Keep within 100 concurrent requests on Plus across HTTP and WebSocket\n\n### Smallest.ai Pulse STT\n\n1. Pass `?model=` on every call, since a missing model returns 400; use `pulse-pro` for English files and `pulse` for other languages or streaming\n2. Send booleans such as `diarize` and `word_timestamps` as the lowercase strings \"true\" or \"false\"\n3. Retry 429 with backoff from 500 ms up to 30 s and honour Retry-After; keep within 25 batch requests a minute on the Standard plan\n4. Use the region-pinned host api.us.smallest.ai or api.india.smallest.ai when the audio must stay in one region\n5. Read speaker labels only from final events, because interim streaming events carry no `words[]`\n\n## Questions\n\n### Which is better for AI agents, IBM Watson Speech to Text or Smallest.ai Pulse STT?\n\nSmallest.ai Pulse STT scores 65 (B) on agent readiness against IBM Watson Speech to Text's 54.5 (C), and leads in 3 of 7 scored categories. IBM Watson Speech to Text leads on security \u0026 auth and transparency \u0026 trust.\n\n### Do IBM Watson Speech to Text and Smallest.ai Pulse STT need an API key?\n\nBoth need an API key.\n\n### Can an agent call IBM Watson Speech to Text and Smallest.ai Pulse STT without installing anything?\n\nNo hosted endpoint is listed for IBM Watson Speech to Text. No hosted endpoint is listed for Smallest.ai Pulse STT.\n\n\n## For agents\n\n- This comparison as JSON: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.json, and with the fewest tokens: https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.min.md\n- Over MCP at https://www.anchorterminal.com/mcp (no key): `compare_tools {\"a\": \"ibm-watson-stt\", \"b\": \"smallest-pulse-stt\"}`. From a terminal: `anchor compare ibm-watson-stt smallest-pulse-stt`\n- Each listing in full: https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/ibm-watson-stt.json and https://www.anchorterminal.com/api/v1/tools/smallest-pulse-stt.json\n\n## Other comparisons with IBM Watson Speech to Text or Smallest.ai Pulse STT\n\n- [Amazon Transcribe vs IBM Watson Speech to Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amazon-transcribe-vs-ibm-watson-stt.md)\n- [Amazon Transcribe vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/amazon-transcribe-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [AssemblyAI Speech-to-Text (Universal) vs IBM Watson Speech to Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt.md)\n- [AssemblyAI Speech-to-Text (Universal) vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/assemblyai-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [Azure AI Speech speech-to-text vs IBM Watson Speech to Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/azure-speech-to-text-vs-ibm-watson-stt.md)\n- [Azure AI Speech speech-to-text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/azure-speech-to-text-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [Cartesia Ink vs IBM Watson Speech to Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cartesia-ink-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt.md)\n- [Cartesia Ink vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/cartesia-ink-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [Deepgram Speech-to-Text (Nova-3, Flux) vs IBM Watson Speech to Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deepgram-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt.md)\n- [Deepgram Speech-to-Text (Nova-3, Flux) vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/deepgram-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [ElevenLabs Scribe Speech to Text API vs IBM Watson Speech to Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/elevenlabs-scribe-vs-ibm-watson-stt.md)\n- [ElevenLabs Scribe Speech to Text API vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/elevenlabs-scribe-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [Giggy Speech to Text vs IBM Watson Speech to Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/giggy-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt.md)\n- [Giggy Speech to Text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/giggy-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [Gladia Speech-to-Text API + MCP vs IBM Watson Speech to Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gladia-stt-vs-ibm-watson-stt.md)\n- [Gladia Speech-to-Text API + MCP vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/gladia-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [Google Cloud Speech-to-Text vs IBM Watson Speech to Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-speech-to-text-vs-ibm-watson-stt.md)\n- [Google Cloud Speech-to-Text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/google-speech-to-text-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [Groq Speech-to-Text vs IBM Watson Speech to Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/groq-speech-to-text-vs-ibm-watson-stt.md)\n- [Groq Speech-to-Text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/groq-speech-to-text-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [IBM Watson Speech to Text vs Inworld STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-inworld-stt.md)\n- [IBM Watson Speech to Text vs MiniMax Speech-to-Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-minimax-stt.md)\n- [IBM Watson Speech to Text vs Mistral Voxtral Transcribe](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-mistral-voxtral-transcribe.md)\n- [IBM Watson Speech to Text vs OpenAI Speech to Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-openai-speech-to-text.md)\n- [IBM Watson Speech to Text vs Rev AI Speech-to-Text API](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-rev-ai-stt.md)\n- [IBM Watson Speech to Text vs Soniox Speech-to-Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-soniox-stt.md)\n- [IBM Watson Speech to Text vs Speechmatics Speech-to-Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-speechmatics-stt.md)\n- [Inworld STT vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/inworld-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [MiniMax Speech-to-Text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/minimax-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [Mistral Voxtral Transcribe vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/mistral-voxtral-transcribe-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [OpenAI Speech to Text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/openai-speech-to-text-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [Rev AI Speech-to-Text API vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/rev-ai-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt.md)\n- [Smallest.ai Pulse STT vs Soniox Speech-to-Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/smallest-pulse-stt-vs-soniox-stt.md)\n- [Smallest.ai Pulse STT vs Speechmatics Speech-to-Text](https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/smallest-pulse-stt-vs-speechmatics-stt.md)\n", "meta": { "attribution": "Anchor Terminal (https://www.anchorterminal.com)", "attributionRequired": true, "credit": "CC BY 4.0, credit Anchor Terminal and link the page or API address you took it from (https://www.anchorterminal.com/terms/#data)", "docs": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/docs/", "generatedAt": "2026-11-07", "license": "CC-BY-4.0", "method": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/benchmark/", "methodology": "0.7", "openapi": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/openapi.json", "preview": false, "run": "2026-10-01", "runLabel": "October 2026 research run", "terms": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/terms/#data" }, "page": { "breadcrumbs": [ { "name": "Home", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/" }, { "name": "Compare", "url": 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Prices, MCP, x402, uptime and agent notes side by side.", "facts": [ "IBM Watson Speech to Text C 54.5", "Smallest.ai Pulse STT B 65", "scores" ], "h1": "IBM Watson Speech to Text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT", "image": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/assets/og/default.png", "path": "/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt", "published": "2026-10-01", "section": "tools", "title": "IBM Watson Speech to Text vs Smallest.ai Pulse STT (2026)", "toc": null, "updated": "2026-11-07", "url": "https://www.anchorterminal.com/compare/ibm-watson-stt-vs-smallest-pulse-stt" }, "tokens": { "markdown": 5150, "slim": 2730 }, "version": 1 }