> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://smallestai-ff1e543d.mintlify.site/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Introduction

> Speech AI APIs by Smallest AI — generate speech with Lightning TTS and transcribe audio with Pulse STT.

[Smallest AI](https://smallest.ai?utm_source=documentation\&utm_medium=getting-started) builds speech AI models and APIs. Generate natural speech, transcribe audio in real-time, and clone voices — all through simple API calls.

## Models

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Lightning (Text-to-Speech)" icon="volume-high" href="/v4.0.0/content/text-to-speech/quickstart">
    Generate speech with 80+ voices, 44.1 kHz audio, and \~100ms latency. English, Hindi, Spanish, Tamil.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Pulse (Speech-to-Text)" icon="microphone" href="/v4.0.0/content/speech-to-text/quickstart">
    Transcribe audio in real-time or from files. 39 languages, speaker diarization, emotion detection.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Get Your API Key

<Steps>
  <Step title="Create an account">
    Go to [app.smallest.ai](https://app.smallest.ai?utm_source=documentation\&utm_medium=getting-started) and sign up with email or Google.

    <img src="https://mintcdn.com/smallestai-ff1e543d/__rdeLT6wbSp7Z7Q/images/sign-up-page.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=__rdeLT6wbSp7Z7Q&q=85&s=407dfc2b36de18bdd308fcdadbea9802" alt="Smallest AI sign up page with email and Google authentication" width="500" style={{ borderRadius: '8px' }} data-path="images/sign-up-page.png" />
  </Step>

  <Step title="Navigate to API Keys">
    In the [Smallest AI console](https://app.smallest.ai/dashboard), select **API Keys** from the left sidebar under **Developer**.

    <Frame caption="Select API Keys under the Developer section in the sidebar">
      <img src="https://mintcdn.com/smallestai-ff1e543d/-Svbu0K2_h-Zx2IT/images/api-keys-sidebar-navigate.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=-Svbu0K2_h-Zx2IT&q=85&s=48dbf58e2f4479aa1bcb889e960b4f07" alt="Smallest AI dashboard with API Keys highlighted under Developer section in the left sidebar" width="3840" height="2160" data-path="images/api-keys-sidebar-navigate.png" />
    </Frame>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Create and copy your key">
    Click the **Create API Key** button in the top-right corner.

    <Frame caption="Click Create API Key to generate a new key">
      <img src="https://mintcdn.com/smallestai-ff1e543d/-Svbu0K2_h-Zx2IT/images/api-keys-create-button.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=-Svbu0K2_h-Zx2IT&q=85&s=b9a615ed1b8b3ebc719f56c7350350ae" alt="API Keys page showing the Create API Key button in the top-right corner" width="3840" height="2160" data-path="images/api-keys-create-button.png" />
    </Frame>

    Enter a name for the key and click **Create API Key**.

    <Frame caption="Enter a name for identification and confirm">
      <img src="https://mintcdn.com/smallestai-ff1e543d/-Svbu0K2_h-Zx2IT/images/api-keys-enter-name.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=-Svbu0K2_h-Zx2IT&q=85&s=5692dcb9fb71fa62b1a710e3291287b4" alt="Create New API Key dialog with API Name field and Create API Key button" width="3840" height="2160" data-path="images/api-keys-enter-name.png" />
    </Frame>
  </Step>

  <Step title="Use your key">
    The newly created key appears in your API Keys dashboard. Click the copy icon to copy it.

    <Frame caption="Copy the API key from the dashboard using the copy icon">
      <img src="https://mintcdn.com/smallestai-ff1e543d/-Svbu0K2_h-Zx2IT/images/api-keys-copy-key.png?fit=max&auto=format&n=-Svbu0K2_h-Zx2IT&q=85&s=c53ca214e7df382ed56c99a3ca5ec3eb" alt="API Keys dashboard showing the newly created key with copy icon highlighted" width="3840" height="2160" data-path="images/api-keys-copy-key.png" />
    </Frame>

    Set it in your terminal:

    ```bash theme={null}
    export SMALLEST_API_KEY="your-api-key-here"
    ```
  </Step>
</Steps>

## Try It Now

### Generate speech (Lightning TTS)

Paste this in your terminal — no install required:

```bash theme={null}
curl -X POST "https://api.smallest.ai/waves/v1/lightning-v3.1/get_speech" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $SMALLEST_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"text": "Hello from Smallest AI!", "voice_id": "magnus", "sample_rate": 24000, "output_format": "wav"}' \
  --output hello.wav
```

Play `hello.wav` — you should hear the same quality as the sample above.

### Transcribe audio (Pulse STT)

```bash theme={null}
curl -X POST "https://api.smallest.ai/waves/v1/pulse/get_text?language=en" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $SMALLEST_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"url": "https://github.com/smallest-inc/cookbook/raw/main/speech-to-text/getting-started/samples/audio.wav"}'
```

You'll get back:

```json theme={null}
{
  "transcription": "This is a sample audio file for testing speech to text transcription with the Pulse API."
}
```

## Next Steps

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="TTS Quickstart" icon="rocket" href="/v4.0.0/content/text-to-speech/quickstart">
    Full guide with Python, JavaScript, and SDK examples.
  </Card>

  <Card title="STT Quickstart" icon="rocket" href="/v4.0.0/content/speech-to-text/quickstart">
    Transcribe files and stream audio in real-time.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Model Cards" icon="id-card" href="/v4.0.0/content/text-to-speech/model-cards/lightning-v3-1">
    Benchmarks, specs, and capabilities.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Cookbooks" icon="book" href="/v4.0.0/content/cookbooks/text-to-speech">
    Production-ready example projects.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Showcase" icon="grid-2" href="https://showcase.smallest.ai/">
    See what developers have built with Smallest AI.
  </Card>

  <Card title="GitHub" icon="github" href="https://github.com/smallest-inc/cookbook">
    Open-source cookbook with 20+ examples.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Community & Support

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Join Discord" icon="discord" href="https://discord.gg/9WtSXv26WE">
    Ask questions, share projects, and connect with other developers.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Email Support" icon="envelope" href="mailto:support@smallest.ai">
    Reach our team directly for technical assistance.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>