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Transcription Overview

Cap automatically generates transcripts for videos with audio using advanced AI speech recognition. Transcripts are:
  • Accurate: High-quality speech-to-text conversion
  • Timestamped: Each line includes precise timing
  • Editable: Fix errors or adjust wording
  • Translatable: Available in multiple languages
  • Downloadable: Export as VTT subtitle files
Transcription is automatically triggered when you upload a video with audio. No manual action required!

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How Transcription Works

1

Upload

Upload your video to Cap (desktop or web)
2

Audio Detection

Cap detects if video contains an audio track
3

Processing

AI processes the audio and generates timestamped transcript
4

Complete

Transcript appears in the Transcript tab (typically 1-5 minutes)

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Accessing Transcripts

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Video Share Page

  1. Open your shared video link
  2. Click the Transcript tab in the sidebar
  3. View the full timestamped transcript

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Transcript Features

  • Timestamps: Each line shows MM:SS timestamp
  • Clickable: Click any line to jump to that moment
  • Search: Find specific words or phrases
  • Copy: Copy entire transcript or selections
  • Download: Export as VTT file

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Transcript Status

Transcripts go through several states:
Transcription is being generated. This usually takes 1-5 minutes depending on video length.What you see: Loading spinner with “Transcription in progress…”

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Editing Transcripts

Only video owners can edit transcripts.

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Making Edits

  1. Click the edit icon next to any transcript line
  2. Modify the text in the text area
  3. Click Save to apply changes
  4. Or click Cancel to discard
Edit transcripts to:
  • Fix misheard words
  • Correct spelling of names or technical terms
  • Adjust punctuation
  • Remove filler words

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What You Can Edit

  • Text content: The actual transcript text
  • Punctuation: Add or remove punctuation

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What You Cannot Edit

  • Timestamps: Timing is locked to the audio
  • Add/remove lines: Cannot split or merge transcript segments
Edits are permanent. There’s no undo, so be careful when making changes.

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Copying Transcripts

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Copy All

  1. Click the Copy Transcript button
  2. Entire transcript is copied with timestamps
  3. Format: [MM:SS] Text content

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Copy Selection

Select specific lines:
  1. Click and drag to select text
  2. Right-click and choose Copy
  3. Or use Ctrl/Cmd+C

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Downloading Transcripts

Export transcripts as VTT files:
  1. Click the Download button
  2. File saves as transcript-VIDEO_ID.vtt
  3. Use with video players or editors

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VTT Format

Transcripts are exported in WebVTT format:
Example VTT
WEBVTT

1
00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.500
Welcome to this Cap tutorial.

2
00:00:03.500 --> 00:00:07.200
Today we'll learn how to use transcription.
VTT files are compatible with most video players, editors, and subtitle tools.

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Captions from Transcripts

Transcripts are automatically used as video captions:
  • Subtitles: Appear on video player
  • Searchable: Captions are indexed for search
  • Accessible: Improve accessibility for viewers
  • Multilingual: Translate to other languages (Pro)
Captions are automatically enabled on the video player. Viewers can toggle them on/off.

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Translation Features (Pro)

Cap Pro Required
Translate transcripts to multiple languages:

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Available Languages

Cap supports translation to:
  • Spanish (Español)
  • French (Français)
  • German (Deutsch)
  • Italian (Italiano)
  • Portuguese (Português)
  • Dutch (Nederlands)
  • Russian (Русский)
  • Japanese (日本語)
  • Chinese (中文)
  • Korean (한국어)
  • And more…

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Using Translations

  1. Open the Transcript tab
  2. Click the language dropdown (globe icon)
  3. Select your target language
  4. Wait for translation (cached for future use)
  5. View translated transcript
Translations are cached, so switching back to previously translated languages is instant.

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Downloading Translated Transcripts

  1. Select a language
  2. Wait for translation to complete
  3. Click Download
  4. File saves as transcript-VIDEO_ID.LANGUAGE_CODE.vtt
Find specific content within transcripts:
  1. Use the search bar in the Transcript tab
  2. Type your search query
  3. Matching lines are highlighted
  4. Click highlighted lines to jump to that moment
Use search to quickly find specific topics, keywords, or quotes in long videos.

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Transcription Quality

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Factors Affecting Quality

High accuracy when:
  • Clear audio with minimal background noise
  • Single speaker or distinct voices
  • Standard accents and speaking pace
  • Good microphone quality
Lower accuracy when:
  • Heavy background noise or music
  • Multiple overlapping speakers
  • Strong accents or fast speech
  • Poor audio quality
For best transcription results:
  • Use a quality microphone
  • Record in a quiet environment
  • Speak clearly and at a moderate pace
  • Minimize background noise

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Retry Transcription

If transcription fails or times out:
  1. Open the video share page
  2. Go to Transcript tab
  3. Click Retry Transcription button
  4. Wait for processing to complete
Retry replaces any existing transcript. Edits will be lost.

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Using Transcripts for SEO

Transcripts improve video discoverability:
  • Searchable Content: Search engines can index transcript text
  • Keywords: Transcripts contain natural keywords
  • Accessibility: Better for users and search engines
  • Rich Snippets: May appear in search results

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Transcripts in the Editor

Use transcripts when editing videos:
  1. Open recording in Cap Desktop editor
  2. Navigate to Captions tab
  3. View and style captions based on transcript
  4. Choose caption presets or customize:
    • Font family and size
    • Background and opacity
    • Position on screen
  5. Export video with burned-in captions
Captions in the editor sync automatically with your transcript edits.

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Transcript Privacy

Transcript visibility matches video privacy:
  • Unlisted videos: Transcript visible to anyone with link
  • Password protected: Transcript requires password
  • Private videos: Transcript only visible to invited users

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Troubleshooting

  • Wait 5-10 minutes (processing time varies by video length)
  • Refresh the page
  • If stuck after 10 minutes, click Retry Transcription
  • Edit incorrect lines manually
  • Check audio quality of original video
  • Retry transcription if severely inaccurate
  • Video may not have an audio track
  • Audio codec might be unsupported
  • Check original recording has sound
  • Try re-exporting with standard audio codec
  • Ensure you’re the video owner
  • Sign in to your Cap account
  • Translation mode is active (can only edit original)
  • Check your internet connection
  • Try a different language
  • Refresh and try again
  • Contact support if issue persists

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Transcript Limitations

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What Transcription Handles

  • English and many other languages
  • Clear speech and dialogue
  • Standard accents and dialects
  • Voice-overs and narration

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What It Doesn’t Handle Well

  • Heavy background music drowning out speech
  • Extreme accents or non-standard speech
  • Whispering or mumbling
  • Non-speech audio (instrumentals, sound effects)

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API Access

Developers can access transcripts via API:
Fetch Transcript
fetch('https://cap.so/api/videos/VIDEO_ID/transcript', {
  headers: {
    'Authorization': 'Bearer YOUR_API_KEY'
  }
})
.then(res => res.json())
.then(data => console.log(data));
API access available for Cap Pro users. Contact support for API documentation.

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Next Steps

AI Summaries

Generate AI summaries from transcripts

Comments

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