To transcribe a user research interview, send the session recording to the Potok bot on Telegram with speaker labels and timestamps on. Files up to 2 GB work. Export to Markdown, paste it into your notes, and link each insight to its time in the video.
Transcribe a recording
Send your voice message, audio or video to @potok_now_bot on Telegram and the text comes back in the chat.
Open @potok_now_bot in Telegram
Files up to 2 GB · export to TXT, MD, DOCX, PDF, SRT and VTT · speaker labels and timestamps · about 30 languages
Key facts
- Timestamps linked to video let a designer click from a quote to the exact moment a user struggled.
- Markdown pastes cleanly into note tools, wikis and repositories, so findings stay next to the project.
- Two voices are the common case: the moderator asks, the participant shows and explains.
How to do it
- Get consent. Tell the participant what is recorded and how long you keep it. Store the answer with the session notes.
- Record screen and voice. A screen recording with sound lets you match words to actions on screen.
- Open the bot. Open @potok_now_bot in Telegram and start a chat with it.
- Switch on labels and timestamps. The moderator and participant will get different numbers, and each passage will carry a time.
- Send the file. Attach the video or audio. A long usability session, up to 2 GB, can use the Upload button of the mini app.
- Export Markdown. Pick MD when the text is ready. Short results also appear in the chat.
- Tag the insights. Add tags such as confusion, request or praise beside the lines that matter, and copy the time with each tag.
- Share the clips. Give the team the quote with its time so they can watch ten seconds instead of the full session.
What the result looks like
[03:20] Speaker 1: What do you expect to happen when you press that button?
[03:26] Speaker 2: I thought it would save my settings, but nothing changed.
[03:34] Speaker 1: Where would you look for confirmation?
Sample text written by us to show the layout of a transcript. It is not the output of the recognition engine and not a real recording.
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Where it works | Telegram bot @potok_now_bot; large files go through the bot's mini app |
| File size | Up to 2 GB |
| Export | TXT, MD, DOCX, PDF, SRT, VTT |
| Speakers and time | Speaker labels and timestamps can be switched on |
| Languages | About 30 languages with good published results; a few more with warnings |
| Translation | The transcript is not translated into another language |
| Dictation | A separate Potok desktop app lets you dictate text into any program; it recognises Russian speech |
Common mistakes
| Mistake | What happens | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Tagging from the text alone | Tone and screen actions are missing, so a joke can look like a complaint. | Watch the clip behind every insight before you share it. |
| Leaving the moderator's leading questions in | You may count answers that the question suggested. | Mark leading prompts and treat those answers with care. |
| Keeping participant names in the notes | Notes spread beyond the research team with personal data. | Use participant codes and store the key separately. |
| Skipping the time in each note | Nobody can find the moment later. | Paste the timestamp with every quote. |
More
See the full list of languages, the tools and the glossary.
Frequently asked questions
Why export to Markdown?
Markdown is plain text with simple formatting. It works in most note tools, wikis and code repositories.
How do I link a quote to the video?
Keep the timestamps on and copy the time beside the quote. Then open the video at that point.
Can I send a screen recording?
Yes. Send it as a video file and the bot works from the sound track. It does not read what is on the screen.
Does it label moderator and participant?
It numbers the voices. Rename the numbers to Moderator and Participant in the exported file.
What about participant privacy?
Use codes instead of names, limit who sees the files, and follow the consent you collected.
Sources
Each source was opened by hand on the date shown. Pages change, so open the source if a detail matters to you.
- Markdown (Wikipedia), Wikipedia · checked
- Speaker diarisation (Wikipedia), Wikipedia · checked
Try it on your own recording
Send your voice message, audio or video to @potok_now_bot on Telegram and the text comes back in the chat.
Open @potok_now_bot in Telegram