Hardware company Nothing launched an AI-powered dictation tool called Essential Voice on Thursday, April 24, 2026, adding to a growing field of apps that convert spoken words into formatted text.
Essential Voice works across any app, removing filler words such as “um” and “ah” and allowing users to create custom voice shortcuts for words, links, templates, and repeated phrases. As an example, a shortcut like “my address” can be mapped to a user’s full address. The tool also supports direct text translation and launches with support for over 100 languages. Nothing said it plans to introduce app-based custom styling in the future, enabling users to adjust the AI’s tone within categories such as work and messaging.
The feature is currently available on the Nothing Phone (3). A rollout for the Phone (4a) Pro is planned for later in April, with Phone (4a) support following in May. Users can activate Essential Voice by pressing the Essential key on supported devices or through the keyboard.
Nothing described the average person as typing 36 words per minute on a phone, compared to speaking roughly four times faster — context the company used to frame the tool’s value.
Nothing is among the first companies to offer a system-level integration for dictation. The source notes that Google recently released an offline dictation app, which may signal that more companies could follow with similar tools.
Source: TechCrunch