Hacker News: RZelaya

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 16:22:34 +0000

Good catch. Easy edge case to miss if you only test on QWERTY. I'll double-check the implementation, thanks for the heads up.

update: You're right, this is a real bug. The Direct version's auto-paste hardcodes the QWERTY keycode for V instead of translating for the active layout, so Dvorak / Colemak / AZERTY users would all hit it. The MAS version is unaffected (clipboard-only; the user presses their own Cmd+V, which is layout-correct). Fix is going into the next release. Thanks for the careful read.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 15:43:21 +0000

Thanks for sharing this. The "phase out the broadly-scoped Accessibility API and replace with narrower permissions" point is exactly the right structural fix. Right now developers have to declare a permission far broader than they actually need, and from the outside the criteria for what counts as legitimate use isn't clearly defined. Interesting that your iOS app got through but macOS didn't. WhisperPad is Mac-only and I haven't gone through the iOS path, so your experience there is useful data. The "demonstrable accessibility" criterion seems to be where everything bottlenecks.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 14:26:07 +0000

From what I understand Wispr Flow distributes directly from their website and doesn't ship through the Mac App Store, so they don't go through Apple's App Store review at all. They use the Accessibility API the same way the direct version of WhisperPad does. The 2.4.5 limitation really only kicks in if you want App Store presence.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 14:06:13 +0000

Apple's built-in dictation works for casual use, but in my own daily use the typo rate was high enough that I was constantly going back to fix things, which defeated the point (with a hand injury, those corrections cost me). WhisperPad uses Whisper models instead, doesn't cut off after 30-60 seconds like Apple's does, supports 99 languages offline, and pastes into any active field via hotkey. There's a 120-minute monthly free tier so you can see if it fits your use case. If Apple's built-in dictation handles what you need, that's a fair answer.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 13:22:48 +0000

Same approach: CGEventPost with Accessibility permission. The wrinkle was that my App Store reviewer wasn't comfortable with how I was using AX permission for auto-paste, even though the mechanism is the same as other apps already in the store. The clipboard-only version of WhisperPad needs no AX permission and that's what got through. Interesting that your sandboxed app with similar mechanics is approved.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 13:22:00 +0000

The direct version uses CGEventPost to synthesize the paste, which requires Accessibility permission. The App Store version writes to the clipboard only, so no AX permission needed and the user presses Cmd+V manually. The 2.4.5 rejection was specifically about the Accessibility permission use case. Your read sounds right that this path has been gimped for a long time.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 13:03:49 +0000

Handy looks great. More tools in this space is a good thing for people who need them.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 13:03:22 +0000

Fair points. The notarization-but-not-App-Store path was actually a workable middle ground in my case. Apple still gates security via notarization, but doesn't gatekeep the use case. The warnings users see when installing non-App-Store apps could be lighter without compromising security.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:59:29 +0000

The paste-phase failures are exactly where most of my hard problems have been. App switching mid-paste, focus changes, slow-loading fields. It's an ongoing battle. Transcription history and custom prompts (especially for code or technical contexts) are good ideas I should think more about. The privacy trade-off on persistent transcripts is the part I've been chewing on.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:56:38 +0000

The acronym is unfortunate, you're not wrong. MITM here is "Moogle In The Machine" (the Final Fantasy moogle + machine learning), but the security-context joke is fair and I hear it constantly.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:44:38 +0000

Fair. I run Nobara on my gaming computer and built a similar dictation tool there with no API restrictions, so the trade-off is real. For this project I chose both: App Store reach for the compliant version, direct distribution for the full one. But I know other people wouldnt be comfortable with running something like that so I built this somewhere my mom could use it

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:42:08 +0000

Useful context, thanks. I hadn't realized Google was tightening similarly. Would be interesting to see how the rationales compare.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:41:34 +0000

I see, that's a really fair point. And I can understand that banking field example. So I can see why they're guarding against it. My disagreement was less with the rule itself and whether Whisperpad's specific use case for users with mobility needs falls on the right side of it.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:38:24 +0000

I am still not certain I understand exactly what Apple's reviewer meant by 2.4.5 in my case. My working assumption is that the concern is about an app reaching into every other app on the system to inject text, but I never got a perfectly clear explanation. (Or maybe I'm too dense to understand it.)

If anyone here has more direct experience with this guideline, especially from the App Store review side, I would like to hear it. I would rather understand the policy than just guess at it.

New comment by RZelaya in "Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API"

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:31:13 +0000

The direct version is fully signed and notarized by Apple, just not distributed through the App Store. Anyone can install it from mitmllc.com/whisperpad without workarounds. The 2.4.5 rejection was an App Store rule, not a general restriction on the app.

Apple rejected my dictation app for using the accessibility API

RZelaya — Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:00:03 +0000

Article URL: https://www.mitmllc.com/blog/apple-rejected-my-dictation-app/

Comments URL: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=48369088

Points: 227

# Comments: 133