Find the next clear step.
One searchable source for setting up Lyrebird, hearing the right audio, asking for guidance, managing account data, and understanding where the beta stops.
Try a shorter term such as “mic,” “audio,” “screen,” “billing,” or “account.” You can also browse the topics above.
Start here
Setup that proves each boundary
Complete setup with a permitted mock session before relying on the app in a time-sensitive setting.
What should I set up first?
Open Setup and work through the four checks: Account, Mic, Audio, and Evidence. Sign in or use the available development key path, choose and test the intended input, select the interviewer-audio source if needed, and add only résumé, role, and project evidence you can support. Generate a practice answer before a real session.
Which computers are supported?
The verified native experience is macOS-first. Windows and Linux audio-routing wizards remain open roadmap work. Native builds are distributed only to invited controlled-beta testers; the site does not promise an unrestricted public download.
macOS
Permissions are specific, not blanket
Microphone and screen access serve different features and may be tied to the exact app build.
Why does Lyrebird need microphone permission?
Lyrebird needs macOS microphone access to capture audio from the input device you select and stream it for transcription. macOS normally prompts on the first Listen attempt. If access was denied, review the Lyrebird entry in System Settings under Privacy & Security, then relaunch the exact build you intend to test.
When is Screen Recording permission used?
Screen capture is used only after you invoke Coding screen capture or the explicit readiness permission test. It is not required for ordinary behavioral, technical, or system-design transcription. Use it only in practice or when the relevant interview permits it.
Why can permissions change after installing another build?
macOS permission and Keychain behavior can depend on the app’s bundle identity and signing. An older installed copy and a newly built copy may not share the same permission state. Confirm the app path, quit duplicate copies, and retest the named build after changing permissions.
Listen path
Audio in, transcript out
Your microphone and the interviewer’s meeting audio are different signal paths.
How do I start and stop transcription?
Select the intended input and press Listen. Lyrebird streams that audio to Deepgram and displays transcription in the app. Press Stop to end capture and the streaming transcription session. The current app does not record raw audio.
How does Lyrebird hear the interviewer?
For meeting playback on macOS, the verified beta path uses BlackHole 2ch. Create a Multi-Output Device containing your real output and BlackHole, choose that Multi-Output Device as macOS output, then choose BlackHole 2ch—not the Multi-Output Device—as Lyrebird’s input. Test with a permitted mock video or call.
Why does BlackHole show no signal when I speak?
That can be expected: BlackHole receives computer playback, not your physical microphone. Play a video or permitted call to test it. Confirm the real speakers are the Multi-Output Device’s primary output, enable drift correction for BlackHole only, and verify BlackHole is selected in Lyrebird.
What if Listen produces no transcript?
Verify the selected input is receiving the intended source, check macOS microphone permission for the exact app, and run Test mic + transcription. Installation or device visibility alone does not prove signal is reaching the stream. Stop and restart the session after correcting the path.
Get guidance
Ask with audio, text, or an explicit action
Lyrebird suggests a starting point; you remain responsible for every statement.
How do I ask Lyrebird a question?
During listening, Lyrebird can respond when the transcription identifies a question. You can also enter a manual question and request an answer. In the native app, ⌘⇧L triggers Answer now. Use manual entry as the fallback when the audio path is not ready.
How do I keep answers grounded in my experience?
Add the relevant résumé, role, job, company, and labeled project evidence before the session. Keep project status precise. Generated suggestions may still be incomplete or wrong, so check every claim and never present experience, credentials, or results you do not have.
How does Coding screen guidance work?
In Coding mode, you explicitly invoke screen capture. The app captures a screen image for the vision request and returns guidance. Screen capture is optional outside Coding mode, capture protection is best-effort, and the feature must not be used where assistance is prohibited.
Account mode
Credits without a live-billing claim
The current checkout and plan surfaces belong to a Stripe test environment.
What uses credits?
In account mode, generated AI answers are metered against the account’s plan or credit balance. Transcription is a separate step and is not described as a credit purchase. If the app reports that you are out of credits, generation stops until the sandbox account state changes.
Is Stripe billing live?
No. Stripe remains sandbox-only. Checkout, credit packs, and subscription controls are test configuration; sandbox purchases are not live charges and have no real monetary value. Production pricing, refunds, cancellation mechanics, and billing terms still require separate review before live payments.
What should I do if checkout fails?
Confirm you are signed in and remember that only the controlled sandbox flow is in scope. Do not enter real payment expectations into a beta test. If you are an invited tester, report the failure through the direct route supplied with the invitation without including payment data.
Data boundaries
Know what crosses each boundary
Audio, generated content, account records, and optional screenshots have different processing paths.
Which services process Lyrebird data?
Deepgram processes audio from the selected input for transcription. OpenAI processes the question or transcript, answer controls, supplied evidence, and an explicitly requested coding screenshot. Supabase supports authentication, metering, account controls, and bounded beta reliability records. Stripe holds sandbox checkout and customer records.
What does Lyrebird retain?
The app does not record raw audio. Transcript, answers, résumé, role, company, job, and project context are session-only in the current desktop implementation and are cleared at sign-out; Clear transcript + answers removes the current interview session. Refresh tokens use macOS Keychain, access tokens stay in memory, and non-sensitive preferences may remain local.
Is Lyrebird invisible during screen sharing?
No guarantee is made. The app includes visibility controls and best-effort content protection for supported capture paths, but it cannot promise protection from every screen-capture method, external cameras, monitoring software, proctoring, or policy enforcement. Test the exact setup and follow the interview’s rules.
User controls
Export, clear, sign out, or delete
Use the authenticated in-app controls instead of sending personal data to an unverified address.
How do I export my account data?
While signed in, open Account & credits and choose Export my data. The authenticated export downloads the Supabase-held profile, usage, crash-fingerprint, and license records as JSON. The service may require recent primary authentication or a higher authentication level.
How do I permanently delete my account?
While signed in, open Account & credits and choose Delete account. Type DELETE to confirm. The sandbox path cancels and removes the associated Stripe sandbox customer and subscriptions, then deletes licenses, the Supabase authentication identity, and cascading account records. Recent authentication may be required.
What is the difference between Clear and Sign out?
Clear transcript + answers removes the current in-memory interview session. Sign out also clears the sensitive résumé, role, job, project, transcript, and answer context and removes the stored session credential from the macOS Keychain. Account records remain until permanent deletion.
Recovery
Diagnose the layer that actually failed
App identity, device routing, network services, and generated output are separate failure points.
What if transcription works but no answer appears?
Check the visible error first. Confirm the app is online, the account session is valid, and the sandbox balance or plan permits generation. Retry with a short manual question to separate question detection from generation. Do not treat a provider or account error as a microphone-permission failure.
How do I bring a hidden Lyrebird window back?
Use ⌘⇧H to show or hide the native window. You can also reopen Lyrebird from the Dock. If behavior is inconsistent, confirm that only the intended app copy is running; duplicate builds can create confusing window and hotkey behavior.
What if an answer is wrong or overstates my experience?
Do not use it as stated. Stop, correct or narrow the supplied evidence, and regenerate only if useful. Lyrebird provides suggestions that may be incomplete or wrong; it does not guarantee accuracy, and you remain responsible for every claim you make.
Current limits
Permitted use and beta support
The product boundary is part of the product—not fine print to hide.
When may I use Lyrebird?
Use Lyrebird for practice, mock interviews, accessibility, or live assistance that the interviewer, employer, school, or platform permits. Disclose assistance when required. Do not use it where outside help is prohibited, to bypass monitoring or proctoring, or to misrepresent qualifications or results.
How do I contact support?
Lyrebird does not yet operate a verified public support or security inbox. Invited testers should use the direct route supplied with their invitation and should not send raw interview content, provider keys, payment information, or unrelated personal data. A public route will be published only after ownership and handling procedures are verified.
Is there an “Ask Lyrebird” help chatbot?
Not yet. This page uses local keyword search only. Its entries have stable links and topic labels so a future product guide can cite the authoritative source passage instead of generating unsupported product claims.
Still orienting?
Start with a permitted mock.
Prove account, input, transcription, evidence, and answer generation one boundary at a time.