Speak your to-do list: turn a voice ramble into separate tasks
A voice to-do list turns what you say into tasks. In Alcove, open Speak tasks (from quick add, or say "Speak tasks in Alcove" to Siri), talk through everything on your mind, and watch it become separate tasks, each with its own date, time and list. Check them, fix anything, and add them in one go.
Some days the fastest way to get things out of your head is to say them. "Call the dentist tomorrow, buy milk on the way home, and the report's due Friday at five, put that in Work." Typing that as three tasks takes a minute. Saying it takes ten seconds.
Alcove's Speak tasks is built for that kind of ramble. You talk; it listens; your words turn into separate tasks as you go, each with its own date, time and list.
How to use Speak tasks
- Open it.
- On iPhone or iPad: tap the microphone in quick add, or choose Speak tasks from a list's menu.
- On the Mac: press ⌥ Space for quick add and choose Speak tasks instead.
- Anywhere: say "Speak tasks in Alcove" to Siri, or run it from a shortcut, including one on the Action button.
- Talk. Say everything at once, in your own words. You'll see the transcript and the tasks appear as you speak.
- Check. When you stop, each task is a card. Tap one to correct it, or remove any you don't want.
- Add. Add them all at once. They land in their lists, on their days, ready for reminders.
What it understands
Say tasks the way you'd say them to a person. Speak tasks picks out:
- Days: today, tomorrow, Friday, next week, in three days
- Times: at 3pm, at 9:30
- Repeats: every day, every weekday, every Monday
- Lists: "put that in Work"
Tips for good results
- Pause between tasks so each one comes out as its own card; you can fix any card before adding.
- Name the list at the end of a task: "...put that in Work".
- Use it for a brain dump at the start of the week, then sort it with the weekly plan.
Privacy
Speech recognition runs on your device. Turning your words into tasks uses Apple Intelligence, on your device or on Apple's Private Cloud Compute, and nothing goes to any other company. There's no Alcove account and no analytics.
Sources
Questions people ask
How is Speak tasks different from asking Siri to add a reminder?
Siri adds one task per request. Speak tasks lets you say everything at once, like a brain dump, and splits it into separate tasks with their own dates, times and lists, which you check before adding.
Does my voice leave my device?
Speech is transcribed by Apple's speech recognition on your device. Turning the transcript into tasks uses Apple Intelligence, which runs on your device or on Apple's Private Cloud Compute. Alcove doesn't send your voice or your tasks to any other service.
Do I need Apple Intelligence?
No, but it helps. With Apple Intelligence, Alcove splits a long ramble into tasks more smartly. Without it, Alcove uses its own rules and asks you to check each task before adding.
Can I start Speak tasks from the Action button?
Yes. "Speak tasks in Alcove" works with Siri and Shortcuts, so you can run it from a shortcut on the Action button.
Does it work on the Mac?
Yes. On the Mac, open quick add with Option-Space and choose Speak tasks, or ask Siri.