A small bar. Next to your selection.
The bar never takes focus from the app you're in. Drag or double-click to select, then press play.
Works in most apps
Drag or double-click to select text in a browser, Notepad, VS Code, and most other apps. The bar never takes focus from the app you're in.
The sign-in you already have
Reads with Cursor's voices through the Cursor desktop sign-in, or with the Codex realtime voice from your ChatGPT sign-in. No API key. Codex uses your plan's Codex access and counts toward its limits.
Always has a voice
If Cursor and Codex can't speak, Edge neural voices take over, then the offline Windows voices. On a Mac, the built-in macOS voice.
You set the order
Settings lists the sources in reading order. Turn each on or off, move it up or down, pick its voice, and test it. The bar's source menu moves a source to the top.
Pause, speed, stop
Pause and continue from the same spot. Pick 0.5× to 2× from the bar. Your choice is saved.
Read-along captions
The sentence being read appears above the bar. Long sentences pan across the line. Size and background are adjustable. Windows only for now.
Six languages
Hebrew, English, Arabic, Russian, Spanish, and French. In Auto, Cursor and Codex infer the language, and Edge and Windows tell Hebrew, Arabic, and Russian apart by script. Or pick one from the menu.
Optional automatic updates
Installs new releases when the app is idle, after checking the installer's SHA-256 digest. Off by default. On a Mac, Settings shows new versions and installs one when you click Download.
Speech-to-text too
An optional local, OpenAI-compatible endpoint lets apps such as OpenWhispr transcribe with the same Codex sign-in. Details.
Where your text goes.
Each source sends text to a different place. Turn off every source except Windows or macOS to keep everything on your computer.
Password fields are never read. The log records engines, timing, and errors, never your text.
Four steps.
Install
Run the installer. It installs for your user only and needs no admin rights. On a Mac, drag the app to Applications.
The app isn't code-signed. On Windows, SmartScreen may warn you: choose More info, then Run anyway. On a Mac, choose Open Anyway in Privacy & Security, then grant Accessibility access when the guide asks. You can read and build the source yourself.
Coming from Codex Speak or Select to TTS? It's the same app under a new name. The installer replaces it and keeps your settings.
Sign in
Sign in to the Cursor desktop app, or install the Codex CLI and run codex login once. Without either, the app uses the Edge and Windows voices, or the macOS voice on a Mac. The first time it starts, the app opens Settings so you can check the voice sources.
Select and play
Select some text anywhere and press ▶. ⏸ pauses and ■ stops.
Tune it
Open Settings from ⚙ on the bar or from the tray or menu bar icon to set speed, source order, captions, start at sign-in, and updates.
Before you install.
The Codex voice is experimental
Codex's realtime API is marked experimental, and about 1 in 12 Codex reads in testing ended early or stayed silent. Silence moves the read to the next source on its own.
Your clipboard is restored
Some apps, such as VS Code, hide their selection. For those the app borrows Ctrl+C and then puts back every clipboard format. You can turn this off. It's skipped in terminals.
Mouse selections only
Drag or double-click shows the bar. Keyboard selections with Shift+arrows don't.
Uninstall
Use Settings > Apps. This removes the app and its sign-in task. Your preferences stay in %APPDATA%\harness-discussion.
Select. Press play. Listen.
Bug reports, fixes, and new language voices are welcome.