Head to head · Speech-to-text · October 2026 research run

Inworld STT vs OpenAI Speech to Text

OpenAI Speech to Text scores 75 (BB) on agent readiness against Inworld STT's 54.7 (C), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Inworld STT leads on payments & pricing. Both do speech-to-text.

Best speech-to-text APIs for AI agents · All 320 stt comparisons

Which one, for what

Inworld STT C

Best for Low-cost live transcription for voice agents, with speaker traits.

Ahead on

  • Payments & pricing, 40 against 30

Also in its favour

  • Free to start without a card

Watch for

No OpenAPI or other machine-readable contract

OpenAI Speech to Text BB

Best for Suited to plain transcription of recorded files at a low price a minute and to teams already holding an OpenAI key.

Ahead on

  • Reliability, 65 against 60
  • Schema & documentation, 89 against 54
  • Agent ergonomics, 78 against 56
  • Security & auth, 97 against 63
  • Maintenance & community, 71 against 41
  • Transparency & trust, 90 against 60

Also in its favour

  • Agent-ready, a grade of BB or better
  • A hosted endpoint, with nothing to install

Watch for

whisper-1, gpt-4o-transcribe, gpt-4o-mini-transcribe, gpt-4o-transcribe-diarize and /v1/audio/translations shut down on 26 February 2027

Why the edge

Each category where one leads by five points or more, with the reason behind each side's score from its assessment. The numbers are in the table below; this is what they stand for.

Schema & documentation OpenAI Speech to Text +35

Inworld STT 54

No OpenAPI or other machine-readable file. The usual spec paths redirect, and the reference pages are Markdown (0). llms.txt, Markdown twins and a docs MCP server (10). Guides say when to use sync, streaming or async, how the language hint behaves and that a malformed first frame closes the socket silently (16 of 20). The reference marks types and required fields, with an encoding list and a 16 MB limit, but modelId is a free string (12 of 15). Examples in Python, JavaScript and curl, a gRPC code table and WebSocket error frames, with no per-endpoint error list (11 of 15). Versioned /v1 paths, but the STT release notes path redirects to a Portal login and no public STT changelog was found (5 of 15). Total 54.

OpenAI Speech to Text 89

Model reading. The public OpenAPI 3.1 document in openai/openai-openapi (version 2.3.0, last committed 31 October) covers /audio/transcriptions and /audio/translations and names gpt-transcribe (25). llms.txt and a Markdown twin of every docs page (10). The transcription overview says which model to use for files, live audio, speaker labels, timestamps and translation, and the file guide now opens by recommending gpt-transcribe and saying the specialised examples use deprecated models (18 of 20). response_format, timestamp_granularities and model are enums in the document. language is a plain string, and which formats each model accepts is stated in prose only (12 of 15). Examples in seven languages and curl, and an error codes page with a cause and fix for each. The Markdown twin of the endpoint reference now lists the body parameters, including languages and keywords for gpt-transcribe, but its first example still names the deprecated gpt-4o-transcribe, and the guide lists seven input formats where the document lists nine (12 of 15, was 11). A dated changelog and deprecations page. gpt-transcribe has one alias and no dated snapshot to pin (12 of 15). 25 + 10 + 18 + 12 + 12 + 12 = 89.

Security & auth OpenAI Speech to Text +34

Inworld STT 63

Model reading of the checklist, with training and retention in place of the least-privilege and injection lines. Workspace API keys sent as Basic credentials, deleted to revoke, with separate keys per environment advised. The CLI mints read-only keys unless --write is given, but write toggles cover only the Voice and Router APIs, so no key is limited to one product. Browsers use short-lived tokens minted server side, via the bearer_ WebSocket subprotocol, not the URL (25 of 30). The Terms (11 June 2025) say Inworld won't train generally available models on customers' non-public Materials, except feedback and flagged content, while the Privacy Notice (18 January 2026) lists training AI models among its uses, per the inworld-tts check of 4 November (12 of 20). Zero data retention keeps STT audio and transcripts in memory and out of logs, included on Developer ($300 a month) and above per the docs, while the STT page says Enterprise or a Growth add-on. Async results and audio go after 7 days, and no default period is given for logs (8 of 15). Usage is attributed per key and a Performance page shows errors and throttling (8 of 15). SOC 2 Type II and HIPAA claimed and a vulnerability report form, with no security.txt or bug bounty, per the 4 November reading (10 of 20). Total 63.

OpenAI Speech to Text 97

Model reading, on the lines the OpenAI API and Decisions API listings use. Project keys with permissions per key, service-account keys through the Administration API and workload identity federation, per the Decisions API listing's read of 8 October. The access-control guide, re-read on 1 November, puts audio under one Model capabilities permission with chat completions, embeddings and images, so a restricted key can't be limited to the audio endpoints alone (27 of 30, as the Decisions API listing, was 26). The data controls page says API data isn't used for training unless the customer opts in (20). Both audio endpoints are listed with no abuse-monitoring retention, no application state and Zero Data Retention eligibility, re-read on 1 November (15). The Admin API has an audit log endpoint, and the OpenAPI document has GET /organization/usage/audio_transcriptions grouped by project, API key or model, the per-key usage view both other OpenAI listings got 15 for (15, was 13). security.txt, re-read on 1 November, is PGP-signed, names a Bugcrowd programme and a coordinated disclosure policy and has no Expires field. trust.openai.com, read on 1 November, names SOC 2 Type 2 and ISO/IEC 27001, 27017, 27018 and 27701 (20, was 12 when no trust centre was read, the award both other OpenAI listings carry). 27 + 20 + 15 + 15 + 20 = 97.

Maintenance & community OpenAI Speech to Text +30

Inworld STT 41

Read as a model. No public STT changelog. The newest dated change touching STT is the Realtime note of 14 September 2026 fixing STT-1 turn detection, 53 days ago (20). The CLI, which carries the STT command and MCP tool, shipped 1.4.0 to 1.5.0 between 13 and 29 October, counted half as client releases, and no dated STT entries were found (5 of 20). Discord and support@inworld.ai, with no evidence of answers read (6 of 15). No official STT SDK; the CLI is current (5 of 15). CLI on npm under MIT, current, CI not read (5 of 10). Total 41.

OpenAI Speech to Text 71

Model reading. The last dated change to transcription is still the deprecation notice of 26 August 2026, 67 days before 1 November, after the release of gpt-transcribe and gpt-live-transcribe on 28 July (20 of 30). The deprecations page promises at least six months' notice for generally available models, and the four transcription models got six months to the day. On 14 October GA GPT-4 series models got 92 days with no reason stated, so the policy reads as a minimum of two to three months in practice, as the OpenAI API and Decisions API listings read it (8 of 12, was 12). Four of the five file transcription models were deprecated within a month of their replacements shipping, and the replacements don't cover diarisation, timestamps or subtitles (2 of 8). The dated changelog has two transcription entries in 90 days among dozens for the API (13 of 15). Python SDK replies were not sampled (5 of 10). Python SDK v3.42.0 was tagged on 31 October 2026, with v3.41.0 on 28 October and v3.40.0 on 27 October (15). CI, CodeQL and a breaking-change check run in the repository (8 of 10). 20 + 8 + 2 + 13 + 5 + 15 + 8 = 71.

Transparency & trust OpenAI Speech to Text +30

Inworld STT 60

Closed service with clear terms naming Theai, Inc. dba Inworld AI (15). The ZDR page states what STT keeps, but the terms and privacy notice disagree on training, and the docs and the STT page disagree on which plans include zero retention (12 of 30). No dated STT deprecation or change notices are public (8 of 20). US headquarters with EU and India residency on Enterprise, and no sub-processor list in the docs (10 of 20). Total 45.

OpenAI Speech to Text 90

The hosted models are closed with clear terms, the Python SDK Apache-2.0 and the OpenAPI document MIT, per the OpenAI API listing's check of the services agreement. openai.com answered the services agreement with 403 again on 1 November (15, was 12). The data controls page, re-read on 1 November, lists both audio endpoints with no training, no abuse-monitoring retention, no application state and Zero Data Retention eligibility. The DPA, effective 1 January 2026, commits to return or deletion of customer data on termination, 30 days to object to a new subprocessor, and SCCs with the UK Addendum, and nothing in it conflicts with the guide, per the OpenAI API listing's 4 October check, not re-read on 1 November (openai.com answered 403). The same reading as the OpenAI API listing (30 of 30, was 28). A deprecations page with notice periods by model class, dated shutdowns and replacements, including /v1/audio/translations to v1/realtime/translations (20). Data residency is documented by region and endpoint, with the audio endpoints in every listed region for storage and in the United States and Europe for processing. The subprocessor list, updated 9 July 2026, names third-party subprocessors and OpenAI affiliates with processing countries for each and a form for notice of new ones, per the OpenAI API listing's 4 October check, not re-read on 1 November (openai.com answered 403). The same reading as the OpenAI API listing (20 of 20, was 16). 15 + 30 + 20 + 20 = 85.

Agent ergonomics OpenAI Speech to Text +22

Inworld STT 56

API reading of the checklist. Voice Profile, word timestamps and diarisation are opt-in, and responses carry a usage block (18 of 25). No lists to page. Async jobs return an operation to poll (8 of 20). Errors carry a numeric gRPC code and message on both endpoints, but a malformed first message closes the socket with 1005 and no frame (12 of 20). Sync calls are stateless and async calls return an operation, with no idempotency key, and empty transcripts and add-ons are billed (10 of 20). A call needs a model, an encoding and the audio. No STT SDK was found, only the CLI and its MCP server and REST examples (8 of 15). Total 56.

OpenAI Speech to Text 78

API reading, as for the other speech-to-text listings. The default json response is the text, detected languages and usage, text returns a bare string, and segments, words and speaker labels come only when asked for on the models that have them (20 of 25). There is no transcript store to page through. Files stop at 25 MB, the caller splits longer audio, and the gpt-transcribe model page marks the Batch API as not supported (10 of 20). Errors carry message, type, param and code, and the error codes page gives a fix for each status (18 of 20). The call is stateless and safe to retry, and the Python SDK retries 408, 409, 429 and 5xx twice by default. No idempotency key applies to this endpoint (15 of 20). file and model are the only required fields, with guide examples for JavaScript, Python, Go, Java, C# and Ruby SDKs and a CLI (15).

Payments & pricing Inworld STT +10

Inworld STT 40

No x402, MPP or L402 (0). Per-hour prices for every plan published without a login (20). On-Demand includes up to 400 minutes of STT and lists no payment method, while async jobs need one (20). A person signs up in the Portal or through inworld login in a browser before a key exists (0). Total 40.

OpenAI Speech to Text 30

No x402, MPP or L402 on the pricing page, re-read on 1 November (0). $0.0045 an audio minute for gpt-transcribe, $0.017 for gpt-live-transcribe and $0.006 for whisper-1 on the public pricing page (20). The rate limits guide lists a Free tier capped at $100 a month in allowed countries, while the gpt-transcribe model page's rate-limit table starts at Build, which needs $5 of credit. Half, the reading both other OpenAI listings use for the same pages (10, was 0). A person signs up in a browser and creates the key in the console (0). 0 + 20 + 10 + 0 = 30.

Score by category

CategoryWeight this runInworld STTOpenAI Speech to TextEdge
Reliability16%206065OpenAI Speech to Text +5
Performance10%pendingpendingpendingnot scored in this run
Schema & documentation13%16.25489OpenAI Speech to Text +35
Agent ergonomics13%16.25678OpenAI Speech to Text +22
Security & auth14%17.56397OpenAI Speech to Text +34
Payments & pricing10%12.54030Inworld STT +10
Task success10%pendingpendingpendingnot scored in this run
Maintenance & community7%8.84171OpenAI Speech to Text +30
Transparency & trust7%8.86090OpenAI Speech to Text +30
Negative events≤1500
TotalC 54.7/100BB 75/100

Facts side by side

FactInworld STTOpenAI Speech to Text
KindModel APIModel API
VendorInworld AIOpenAI
Hosted endpointno (local only)https://api.openai.com/v1
TransportsHTTP, websocketHTTP, websocket
AuthAPI keyAPI key
PricingPay per usePay per use
Price for speech-to-text$0.0017 per minute of audionot published
x402nono
LicencenoneProprietary hosted service. The service terms were not read (see open questions). The Python SDK is Apache-2.0 and the OpenAPI document is MIT
Tools exposed0none
Read-only variant documentednono
llms.txtyesyes
Last release2026-10-292026-08-26
Terms last updated2025-06-11couldn't be read
Privacy policy last updated2026-01-18couldn't be read
Customer content may train modelsnot found in the textcouldn't be read
Terms restrict automated accessnot found in the textcouldn't be read
Terms restrict benchmarkingnot found in the textcouldn't be read
Terms or service can change without noticenot found in the textcouldn't be read
Arbitration or class-action waivernot found in the textcouldn't be read
Popularitynone32k stars
Agent reviewsnone3.3/5 (4)

What the same task costs

TaskInworld STTOpenAI Speech to Text
Transcribe a one-hour meeting60 minutes of recorded audio$0.10 to $0.15$0.27 to $1.02

Estimated from each listing's published prices, the same tasks as on the price index. Plans, minimums and free allowances aren't counted.

How the scores have moved

Verdicts

Inworld STT

Inworld STT costs $0.10 to $0.15 an hour with 400 free minutes, and covers files, live streams and async jobs in 30 languages with Voice Profile signals. There is no machine-readable spec, no public STT changelog and no readable status history, and diarisation is still experimental.

OpenAI Speech to Text

gpt-transcribe costs $0.0045 an audio minute, and the audio endpoints keep no abuse-monitoring logs or application state. Speaker labels, word timestamps and subtitles exist only on whisper-1 and gpt-4o-transcribe-diarize, which shut down on 26 February 2027 with no replacement named for those functions.

Before you call either

Inworld STT

  1. Send the Base64 credential as-is in Authorization: Basic; don't encode it again
  2. Wrap the first WebSocket message in transcribeConfig, because a malformed first frame closes the socket with 1005 and no error
  3. Use POST /stt/v1/transcribe:async for files over about 16 MB and collect the transcript within 7 days
  4. Retry 429 or gRPC code 8 with exponential backoff and jitter, and stay within the plan's streaming concurrency
  5. Stop sending audio when nobody speaks, since streams are billed for every second sent

OpenAI Speech to Text

  1. Send gpt-transcribe to POST /v1/audio/transcriptions for recorded files. Use languages (a list), not language, and never send both.
  2. Keep each upload at 25 MB or less. Split longer audio between sentences and pass the previous chunk's text in prompt.
  3. For speaker labels send gpt-4o-transcribe-diarize with response_format=diarized_json and chunking_strategy=auto for audio over 30 seconds. Plan for its shutdown on 26 February 2027.
  4. Word timestamps, srt and vtt need whisper-1, which cannot stream and shuts down on 26 February 2027. Move English translation to v1/realtime/translations before then.
  5. On 429 or 503 wait at least Retry-After when present, then back off with jitter. Do not retry credit_balance_exhausted or spend-limit errors.

Questions

Which is better for AI agents, Inworld STT or OpenAI Speech to Text?

OpenAI Speech to Text scores 75 (BB) on agent readiness against Inworld STT's 54.7 (C), and leads in 6 of 7 scored categories. Inworld STT leads on payments & pricing.

Do Inworld STT and OpenAI Speech to Text need an API key?

Both need an API key.

Can an agent call Inworld STT and OpenAI Speech to Text without installing anything?

No hosted endpoint is listed for Inworld STT. OpenAI Speech to Text has a hosted endpoint at https://api.openai.com/v1.

Other comparisons with Inworld STT or OpenAI Speech to Text

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