What Walkie sends, and what it never sends
On-Device Mode dictation sends no speech and needs no account. Cloud Mode sends the audio of a single dictation and, when AI Polish is on, may also send a destination-app category and text context. Walkie does not keep that clip after processing, but the cloud provider handles it under its own data policy. Read Aloud and meetings have separate paths. Providers are bound not to train on what you say.
Feature by feature
| Feature | What leaves your machine | Retained? |
|---|---|---|
| On-Device Mode dictation | Nothing | N/A — no request is made |
| Cloud Mode dictation | The audio of one dictation. With AI Polish on, a destination-app category and selected or surrounding text, or the sentence being rewritten | Walkie does not store the clip after the response. Cloud Mode text history syncs to your account; provider handling follows its own policy. |
| Read Aloud (cloud voices) | The text you asked to have read | Walkie does not store the synthesis request after the audio is returned; provider handling follows its policy |
| Read Aloud (on-device voice) | Nothing — the voice runs on your computer | Nothing leaves your machine |
| Meetings (cloud) | Meeting audio, for transcription and summarising | Stored in your account until you delete it |
| Meetings (on-device recap) | Nothing — the recap is generated locally | N/A |
| Custom dictionary & snippets | Synced to your account in Cloud Mode only | Stored until you delete them |
| Settings (if signed in) | Preferences. API keys, Slack tokens, and MCP env are stripped | Until you delete the account. Heartbeat keeps the device list current |
| Usage analytics | Feature counts, if the switch is on (off by default in On-Device Mode) | Until you delete the account. Never speech, email, or app names |
| App continuity check | A signed active/inactive status request to Cloudflare Workers (no account, audio, or transcripts) | Refreshes a local 90-day grace period. Edge access logs may retain IP/timestamp |
The one rule that never changes
Nothing you say, dictate, read aloud, or record is used to train AI models. Not on the free plan, not on any paid plan, not by Walkie, and not by the providers Walkie sends requests to. This is contractual with the providers, not a preference toggle, and not something the app can prove from the client.
What remains after a cloud request
Walkie does not store a Cloud Mode dictation clip after processing. Cloud Mode transcript history can sync to your account. Groq receives the audio and, when AI Polish is on, can also receive selected or nearby document text. We have enabled Groq's Inference APIs Zero Data Retention for eligible requests; Global ZDR is disabled. Groq's data policy says the inference switch prevents retention of eligible inputs and outputs for reliability and abuse review, while non-content usage metadata is still retained. It does not cover Walkie's synced text, Cloudflare, Supabase, Soniox, or Speechify.
If you need an absolute guarantee
Use On-Device Mode for speech processing. Audio, transcription, and optional local polish stay on your computer. Model downloads can still make network requests without sending your speech. Signed-in installs also make an app-continuity check and can sync settings; opt-in analytics can make separate requests. An unsigned on-device install does not make the app-status check. In the current desktop release, the signed-in app stops working if that check remains unreachable beyond 90 days; a valid signed discontinuation response can also stop it. This is the mode for material under legal privilege, under NDA, or covered by a policy that forbids third-party speech processing.
Recording other people
Walkie records your computer's audio, so it will capture everyone on a call without appearing in the participant list. Whether you may do that is a legal question that varies by jurisdiction, and in many places it depends on whether every participant consented.
What Walkie writes to its log file
Walkie keeps a log on your computer to diagnose problems — it is the file Export logs collects when you report one. Versions before 1.11.2 wrote every dictation, and every Ask Agent question and answer, into it. That was wrong and it has stopped: the log now records that something was transcribed, not what it said.
For logs already on your computer, Settings → Support → Remove my words rewrites them in place, replacing transcribed text with a marker. Run it before sending logs to support if you want to be certain.
Deleting things
Deleting an entry removes its active Walkie account record. Synced text is not end-to-end encrypted: account access controls separate users, but authorized Walkie operators and Supabase infrastructure can access plaintext. The production Supabase dashboard reports a Free Plan, which has no scheduled project backups. We have not verified retention of any provider-internal operational copies. Deleting your account does not erase local copies on your devices or provider request metadata held under a provider's own schedule.
- A meeting — delete it from the Meetings list. Deletion is permanent: the rows, the audio, and the cloud copy all go.
- Your dictation history — cleared from Settings → History. Since 1.11.3 there is also a button that removes every dictation and read-aloud at once, rather than waiting for the retention schedule.
- A share link — revoked from the meeting's Share menu, or from Shared on the web dashboard, which lists every link you have sent and who has opened it. Revoking takes effect immediately.
- Your words in old log files — Settings → Support → Remove my words.
- Your account — Delete account in Settings → Account in the app, or on your account page at trywalkie.com. Active account records are deleted, except meetings you shared with a team, which stay with that team. Supabase's Free Plan does not provide scheduled project backups; retention of any provider-internal operational copies is unverified.
Frequently asked questions about what Walkie sends, and what it never sends
Is my audio used to train AI models?
No. Not on any plan, not by Walkie, and not by the providers processing the requests. This is contractual, not a setting.
Is Walkie HIPAA compliant?
Walkie does not sign a BAA. Cloud Mode sends audio to a provider, so do not treat its retention setting as a substitute for a BAA where one is required. On-Device Mode keeps speech processing local, but your organization still needs to assess local history, recovery files, device security, and its own policies.
Where are meeting recordings stored?
In your Walkie account, in cloud storage, until you delete them. They are not shared with anyone unless you share them.
Can my employer see my dictations?
No. There is no admin console that reads member content. On Walkie Team, the owner manages billing and admins manage membership — neither can read anyone's transcripts. Only meetings someone deliberately shares become visible to teammates, and those stay with the team if that person later leaves it.
Does Walkie record when I have not pressed the shortcut?
No. The microphone is opened when you start a dictation or a meeting recording and closed when you stop. There is no always-on listening, and no wake word unless you switch one on.