Siri Shortcuts

Echo provides Siri Shortcuts actions so you can start, stop, and dismiss recordings using your voice, the Shortcuts app, or any automation that supports App Shortcuts on macOS.

Available Actions

Echo exposes two actions to Siri and the Shortcuts app:

Toggle Recorder

Starts a new recording if Echo is idle, or stops the current recording if one is in progress. This is the primary action for hands-free control.

Siri phrases you can use:

• "Toggle Echo recorder"
• "Start Echo recording"
• "Stop Echo recording"

Dismiss Recorder

Cancels any active recording and closes the recorder window. Use this when you want to abandon a recording without transcribing it.

Siri phrases you can use:

• "Dismiss Echo recorder"
• "Cancel Echo recording"
• "Close Echo recorder"

Using Siri

You can trigger either action by speaking to Siri. Make sure Siri is enabled in System Settings > Siri & Spotlight on your Mac.

1. Activate Siri (hold the microphone key, the globe key, or say "Siri" if voice activation is on).
2. Say one of the phrases listed above, for example: "Start Echo recording".
3. Echo will toggle or dismiss the recorder in the background -- you do not need to have the Echo window open.

Building Custom Shortcuts

You can also use Echo's actions inside the Shortcuts app to build automations.

1. Open the Shortcuts app on your Mac.
2. Click + to create a new shortcut.
3. Search for "Echo" in the actions panel on the right.
4. Drag Toggle Recorder or Dismiss Recorder into your shortcut.
5. Combine with other actions as needed -- for example, you could open a specific app first, then start an Echo recording.

Example Shortcuts

Quick dictation shortcut: Create a shortcut with a single "Toggle Recorder" action and assign it a keyboard shortcut in the Shortcuts app. This gives you an alternative way to start recordings beyond Echo's built-in global hotkey.

Meeting preparation: Build a shortcut that opens your video call app, then toggles the Echo recorder, so you are ready to transcribe from the moment the call starts.

Tips

• Echo does not need to be the active window for Siri Shortcuts to work. As long as Echo is running in the menu bar, the actions will fire.
• If Siri does not recognize the phrases, try opening the Shortcuts app first. macOS registers Echo's actions when the Shortcuts app discovers them.
• You can rename and customize shortcuts in the Shortcuts app without affecting Echo's functionality.

Related

• Recording Settings -- set up global hotkeys within Echo
• Recording Settings -- configure audio input and recording behavior