Captions

Caption and reframe user-owned short videos with local models

NOT REALLY · consider alternatives
price $24.99/mosubscription / year $299.88estimated build time closest consolation build: one sittingreplaced by 0 people

A consolation build is possible, but the paid product's decisive value sits outside a solo rebuild. For Captions, caption and reframe user-owned short videos with local models. The hard boundary is proprietary editing models, mobile capture, avatars, cloud rendering, and creator workflow, plus models, compute, rights, and safety operations.

Build verification: not recorded. How we judge buildability

What you give up

  • proprietary editing models, mobile capture, avatars, cloud rendering, and creator workflow
  • frontier voice or avatar model
  • licensed voice catalog
  • real-time rendering fleet
  • moderation, consent verification, and enterprise rights

Why people still pay

People still pay for Captions because customers pay for output quality, production speed, licensed voices, consent workflows, and a provider that carries the operational risk. The recurring cost buys model licensing, consent records, impersonation risk, watermarking, GPU queues, media storage, abuse response, and rapid model changes, not just the visible interface.

Your build guide

The stack, security requirements, and agent rules for a focused replacement.

Before you start

  • local TTS model
  • ffmpeg
  • GPU recommended
  • voices the user has rights and consent to use
01
Use Python 3.12, FastAPI, SQLite, ffmpeg, and a user-owned local TTS model.
02
Model source audio, processing jobs, transcript or edit segments, and exported media; store source IDs and timestamps for each.
03
Interface for this synthetic voice, dubbing and AI avatars workflow: a local web page with input, progress, review, and export views.
engineering roadmap

Implementation plan

1

Phase 1, architecture and data

Use Python 3.12, FastAPI, SQLite, ffmpeg, and a user-owned local TTS model. Model source audio, processing jobs, transcript or edit segments, and exported media; store source IDs and timestamps for each.

2

Phase 2, implement

Generate speech from text with voice, speed, pause, pronunciation, and segment controls.

3

Phase 3, implement

Create a timeline for audio, captions, uploaded visuals, and simple transitions.

4

Phase 4, review and output

Store prompts, model identifiers, consent notes, and output hashes in a local provenance log. Embed project metadata and a visible synthetic-media disclosure in exported assets.

5

Phase 5, recovery and acceptance

On invalid input or interrupted processing, keep the original record, show the failed step, and permit a safe retry. Verify this invariant with a saved fixture: An invalid input or interrupted operation must retain the source and show a recoverable state; exported records must reload with the same IDs. State the practical limit: proprietary editing models, mobile capture, avatars, cloud rendering, and creator workflow.

the pro prompt
Build me a focused synthetic voice, dubbing and AI avatars workflow for the personal core of Captions. Requirements:

- Use Python 3.12, FastAPI, SQLite, ffmpeg, and a user-owned local TTS model. Model source audio, processing jobs, transcript or edit segments, and exported media; store source IDs and timestamps for each.
- Paid product context: Caption and reframe user-owned short videos with local models. Build only this DIY scope: Caption and reframe user-owned short videos using a local model, label any synthetic media clearly, and retain provenance for every output.
- Generate speech from text with voice, speed, pause, pronunciation, and segment controls.
- Create a timeline for audio, captions, uploaded visuals, and simple transitions.
- Store prompts, model identifiers, consent notes, and output hashes in a local provenance log.
- Use a local web page with input, progress, review, and export views. Required input or access: local TTS model; ffmpeg.
- Recovery: On invalid input or interrupted processing, keep the original record, show the failed step, and permit a safe retry.
- Acceptance: with one labelled sample, show the input, saved intermediate state, and exported result; verify this invariant: An invalid input or interrupted operation must retain the source and show a recoverable state; exported records must reload with the same IDs.
- Out of scope: proprietary editing models, mobile capture, avatars, cloud rendering, and creator workflow; frontier voice or avatar model. Keep this a personal, inspectable workflow.
- Include a README with setup, a sample input, required keys or permissions, data location, and the supported scope.

$ open in your agent (prompt prefilled, you press enter), copy the prompt or copy AGENTS.md · generated from this app's build plan

prior art · use these instead of building, if you'd ratherPiperActive community continuation of the fast local Piper text-to-speech engine.↗
share on X ↗

Captions pricing

planmonthlyannual (per mo)what you get
free$0$00 AI-usage credits; 1 caption template; basic editing/captions in 100+ languages.
max$24.99—500 AI credits/month.Live public figures explicitly reflect iOS plans; exact annual effective price is not exposed.
scale 1x$69.99—1,400 AI credits/month.Exact annual effective price is not exposed.
scale 2x$139.99—2,800 AI credits/month.Exact annual effective price is not exposed.
scale 4x$279.99—5,600 AI credits/month.Exact annual effective price is not exposed.
enterprise——Custom seats, credit volume, and bulk discount.Custom price.

free tier0 AI credits; 1 caption template; basic editing/captions in 100+ languages

billingmonthly + annual; annual plans are prepaid for 12 months, but exact effective prices are not publicly exposed

hidden costsUnused paid credits roll over only until the balance reaches 3× the monthly allowance. Upgrades are prorated; downgrades apply at cycle end. Web/Android pricing can differ from the published iOS figures.

pricing sources checked 2026-08-12 · pricing source ↗

Questions about Captions

Can you build your own Captions with AI?

A full replacement is not the recommended project. A consolation build is possible, but the paid product's decisive value sits outside a solo rebuild. For Captions, caption and reframe user-owned short videos with local models. The hard boundary is proprietary editing models, mobile capture, avatars, cloud rendering, and creator workflow, plus models, compute, rights, and safety operations.

What does the Captions build prompt cover?

The prompt starts with this scope: Caption and reframe user-owned short videos using a local model, label any synthetic media clearly, and retain provenance for every output. Full-product capabilities excluded from the comparison include: proprietary editing models, mobile capture, avatars, cloud rendering, and creator workflow; frontier voice or avatar model; licensed voice catalog. Follow the implementation plan and its prerequisites before expanding the build.

How do I use the prompt, AGENTS.md and agent skills?

Start with the Captions prerequisites and stack, then copy the prompt into your coding agent. Save the project rules as AGENTS.md in the project root. Linked skills are optional packages or source instructions for specific tasks; review their current contents and install only those matching the chosen stack. A skill does not supply API credentials or verify the finished app.

How long will this Captions project take?

The catalogue estimate is closest consolation build: one sitting for the limited scope. Setup, integration approvals, debugging, deployment and ongoing maintenance can add time. This is an estimate, not a delivery guarantee.

What would I give up by replacing Captions?

proprietary editing models, mobile capture, avatars, cloud rendering, and creator workflow; frontier voice or avatar model; licensed voice catalog; real-time rendering fleet; moderation, consent verification, and enterprise rights. People still pay for Captions because customers pay for output quality, production speed, licensed voices, consent workflows, and a provider that carries the operational risk. The recurring cost buys model licensing, consent records, impersonation risk, watermarking, GPU queues, media storage, abuse response, and rapid model changes, not just the visible interface.

What price is this guide comparing against?

The recorded Max plan is $24.99/mo (monthly), checked 2026-08-12. Check the linked pricing source before buying. Building your own also has hosting, API and maintenance costs; the recorded amount is not a guaranteed saving.

What can I use instead of building Captions?

The prior-art section lists Piper as starting points. Review their current scope, license and maintenance before adopting one.

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